Thicker Than Oil
by Asphalt-Cowgirl04
Summary: American agent Rod "Torque" Redline is sent out on a mission to investigate and thwart the evil plans of the Lemon families out on the oil rigs, but gets more than what he will have ever bargained for.
1. Homeward Bound

_Hey guys its DDW, back from the dead and writing again! I'm in college now and have work so I will work on this if I can. Kind of doing this for fun and kinda wanted to give Rod Redline a BG story. Enjoy!_

Chapter 1 –Homeward Bound

Another mission completed. Another villain's plan thwarted from inflicting disaster on society. Every car in the world celebrated, since if evil had not been stopped, all would have surely been doomed. Every car in the world celebrated the demise of evil, all except for one.

In a private jet, which was now sailing across the Atlantic Ocean from overhead, a muscle car gloomily looked out the window at the sea below. He was completely drained of all energy, his eyelids heavy and his eyes were bloodshot. He sighed as he reached into a compartment in front of him and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, where he took one out, popped it in his mouth and gave it a light. He breathed in and then out, sending cigarette smoke curling lazily around his front bumper. Out of all the cars in the world, he should have felt far much better and had more of a reason to celebrate, since this successful mission was his own. The muscle car's name was Rodney Redline, or Rod Redline for short. This was his own party and he was far from celebrating.

"About thirty minutes till we reach our destination, Mr. Redline," his flight attendant announced as she drove past him towards the back of the jet. "Would you like a pot of coffee, you look…"

"I'm fine, thank you," he mumbled, and with that she quickly drove away. After she left he puffed on his cigarette again, taking the pleasure of the nicotine rushing to his head.

Rod Redline was a Challomerostang, a cross between a Challenger, Camaro, and Mustang. He was a big, bulky dark metallic blue car with a black stripe going down each side of him, and his eyes were the color of sapphire. Within his left metallic silver hubcap, he contained something very unusual for many, and that happened to be a gun.

His occupation was very different from most cars, in that he was a famous American spy, who was like no other. Every mission he was sent on he completed successfully, obtaining every bit of vital information necessary in order to thwart an evildoer's plans. He had been successful in that he was a master of disguises and a great actor, in that he could gain the trust of anyone by becoming someone else. How he became this way, and how he rose to his position of espionage, could be attributed to his dark past.

He was previously a resident of downtown Detroit, where things had gone from heaven to hell. At one time his city was bustling with big business and success, but for the past few years cars began to abandon it and had left it to rot. The American dream that was once there, a dream to build an auto metropolis, was gone. What was left was a lack of jobs, depression, and crime, which soon came to label his city as one of the worst to live in, in America. And unfortunately, Rod and his family had been drawn into all the crime and depression that lingered there.

While Rod was not attending high school, he dealt drugs in the early hours of the morning by force. His parents, who worked minimum wage jobs, were also well known drug dealers. With their children's servitude, which consisted of Rod and his two brothers and sister, they distributed drugs to cars all throughout the city. But what made the Redline family well known amongst most buyers was not the amount of drugs they sold, but how they were able to receive their drugs without getting caught. Any car knew they were safe when they were getting their drugs from a Redline, especially Rod, the stealthiest of them all. He could get cars in and out of a deal like a car going from 0 to 60 in .5 seconds, one minute he was there and the next minute he was gone, the buyer with drugs in tire. However, what amazed buyers most was that oddly every time he showed up to make a deal, he never looked the same. He was always a different type of car. He did this by dressing up as different types of cars by making various costumes, and this skill soon became helpful later on in his top-secret missions.

Although he was highly intelligent, Rod never made it to college since his parents had no money, and instead enlisted into the Army. Through the Army he rose in the ranks quickly, becoming a very trusted solider and skillful gunman. With his skills gained from drug dealing and his smarts, he was able to thwart a scandal occurring within the higher ranks of the Army he accidentally got involved in, which lead him to be offered an opportunity in the world in espionage. He took it and from there, his success as a spy skyrocketed. He himself could not believe where he was today, since he never thought he would get beyond the city of Detroit, and the fate of the rest of his family.

As much as he loved espionage, the one disadvantage of his job was he was never around at home. He had a beautiful wife, a black and sleek Beemer, and two children, both of them boys whom he rarely saw. When he came home from missions, he spent as much time with his family as time allowed, before the CIA called him back for another mission. It was always heartbreaking to leave, and every time he left his wife she would be in tears. But before he left, he always told her he loved her and she was like no other; and he lived up to that by being honest and faithful. No matter how many women he met on his missions, his love for his wife kept him far from risky business. To him all that mattered in his life were the mission and his family, and nothing could ever come between that. To him he felt like in life he was given a second chance, and he had to live up to it by being a great agent and a loving husband.

"We have about ten minutes till landing Rod," the flight attendant came back again, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Alright, thanks for the heads up," he nodded, puffing on his cigarette again.

"So, after that crazy mission, think you will be taking on any more?" the flight attendant asked him. She flew many agents around the world, and she had noticed that they sent out Rod the most, for many years.

"No," Rod said in a flat voice, looking over at her. "It's been too long since I've seen my family last, I can't. But that doesn't mean they won't try to make me do another one." Rod sighed. "I've been doing this for too many years, there are so many other agents who could work as well. I mean, I know I do my job, but I need some rest. I've hardly seen my boys, and my wife needs some love after all this time. They don't understand, I mean work means a lot, but not everything. My family means everything…." He paused and looked out the window. "But espionage is all I have, the only opportunity for work I was given. I know my family understands but it's not easy when I'm gone for so long…" The pilot, who was the jet, then interrupted him.

"Mr. Redline, five minutes till landing. I have also gotten word your wife is waiting for you at the CIA. And hate to break it to you sir, but the director needs you for another mission, apparently some strange stuff is happening out at sea that needs investigating." Rod then cursed under his breath. Although he was happy his wife was coming to greet him, the word of him being needed on another mission did not please him. There was going to be some difficulty getting out of this one, but it had to be done.


	2. BreakDown

Chapter 2 – Breakdown

Rod Redline quickly exited the jet as soon as it landed in the private CIA airport. He drove off towards the main building, where he knew his wife would be awaiting his return. He hoped that along the way he would not meet the director of the CIA, Pete, who was a silver 1965 Cadillac Eldorado. He knew that Pete would surely talk him into this new mission.

As he entered the main building, he quickly drove down the halls heading towards the visitors area. Just as he was almost at the door, a few feet from his wife, he saw Pete come out of a room not far from the door. He smiled at his prized agent.

"Torque me bucko!" Pete shouted as he approached the muscle car, and Rod sighed as a sign of defeat. He did not really like being called Torque; it was an old name he was given back in the Army, and for what he really didn't know. And now Pete beat the name as if it were a dead horse. "I'm so proud of you! You have proven yourself once again as one of the most astounding agents I know here at the CIA. Wonderful, wonderful work you do for us, you make us so proud!" As Rod was getting showered with praise, he knew what exactly what would come next.

"Since you have done such a wonderful job, may I ask you if you can do another mission for us, for the CIA, and for your country," Pete asked with a huge grin. Rod thought for a moment. He didn't want to give a flat out "no", or accept the offer just yet. Quickly he thought of an idea.

"Well, by any chance would I be able to talk to my wife about this? I mean, I haven't seen her and the boys in so long, I don't know how she will take me going away on another mission again," Rod stated. Pete gave that a thought and nodded his hood.

"Do what you gotta do, Torque. Talk to her and then report back to me. I'll be in my office if you need me." Pete then drove off down the hall, giving Rod the chance to escape. He opened the door to the visitor's area and saw his wife waiting for him on the other side of the room.

"Emily!" he shouted with joy, speeding over towards her. Once he was right in front of her he reached out to her to give her a kiss on the lips, but something stopped him. He noticed that Emily was not smiling, or showing any emotion towards him on behalf of his return. In fact when he tried to give her a kiss, she had reversed a bit. Taken aback, Rod looked at her with confusion.

"What's going on, honey? Aren't you happy to see me?" He then flashed a smile at her. "I'm happy to see you. If it's about the mission I'm going to talk myself out of it. I want to stay home with you and the boys, I can't do this again since I love…"

Emily finally spoke, interrupting him. "Rodney Redline, I want you to meet someone. Jackson, get over here."

There was another car in the room Rod hadn't noticed. This car was a fiery red Dodge Challenger; with a flame job that stretched across both sides of his metal body. His eyes were hazel and his hubcaps shimmered as he drove towards Emily's side.

"Rod, this is Jackson. Jackson, this is Rod," Emily introduced. The two cars looked at each other, Jackson giving him the death glare and Rod giving Jackson a look as if he were an alien.

"Who are you?" Rod asked Jackson. Then he turned to Emily. "Dear, who is this? What the hell is going on?"

"Don't call me Dear," she snapped, causing Rod to let out an inaudible gasp. He had never heard Emily speak to him like that before. "I've been thinking about it over and over, but I have to finally say this is it, Rod. I can't take it anymore." Emily gave him the coldest glare she had ever given him, and the words that followed almost pierced his mirrors.

"I want a divorce."

Everything went still for a moment, as if the world had stopped. A cold stillness hung over the room between Rod and Emily, as the two stared at each other in silence. It seemed like an eternity had past before Rod finally spoke.

"Why? How could you do this to me?" he asked, his voice starting to tremble. "After all these years, after all the love I gave our family…"

"What love? When your gone away on missions, you can't give any, can you?" Emily shot back at him. "I've had enough of waiting around till you come home to get the attention our sons and I need! I need someone who will be around to take care of us."

"I thought we had an understanding! I've told you, this job was the only one I could ever have because of all the crap that happened in my life when I was younger. It was the only opportunity in my life I was given, I never went to college like you did! And I'm able to support you guys and do the best I can to be a good father. I love you very much and have been faithful only to you and this is what I get? " Rod shouted back, tears starting to stream down from his eyes.

"Enough Rod, that's enough!" Emily shouted back, hitting him across the face with her tire. Rod reversed and winced in pain, the right side of his mouth now throbbing. "Were through! And that is that, there's nothing you can do to get me back with you now. Understand, when you come back from this mission, were taking this to divorce court. I want to ensure that I gain full custody of my kids as well; they don't need a bad influence like you in their lives, and they need someone in their life they can count on."

Rod didn't know what to say, he was speechless. How could she say he was a bad influence to their kids when he never did anything to harm their children's moral in the first place? And what did she mean someone they could count on? He knew he was away for long periods of time, but that didn't mean he was never home and he knew he would do anything for his family and protect them if need be.

"Well, if you have nothing else to say, I have to get going then. Me and Jackson have a date tonight," Emily said smugly to him.

"A date? Wait, your dating this guy? For how long has this been going on?" He couldn't believe what was happening. After all those years of being together…

"Guess it won't hurt to tell you now, would it?" She let out a short laugh. "I've been dating Jackson for about five months now, about as long as you have been gone on your last mission. And over the years while you have been away, I've dated about three different cars and rendezvoused with many more, and all of them have been able to give me more attention than you will have ever had." She smiled grimly at her soon to be ex-husband, and turned to her date.

"Come on Jackson, let's go, we have plans for tonight." And with that, Emily and Jackson left, leaving Rod behind in the room by himself. His mouth was gaping with shock.

It had all happened so fast. The one he loved, the one he had waiting on every second for to see once he had returned home, had wanted nothing to do with him anymore. And after all those years he was so faithful to her, she cheated on him behind his back with more cars than he wanted to count. All at once Rod felt like his world had fallen apart, all of the love and effort he put into his family had gone, and now he was left with a lonely broken heart. He had lost his parents, his sons, and the love of his life, and now he had no one. The thought of this sent a wave of distraught over him, and he felt as if he were going to cry. Biting his lower lip and holding back the tears, he rushed to the men's bathroom not too far down the hall from the visitor's area, and wept.

Rod could not remember the last time he had cried, if ever. The feeling was horrible, and he wished that he could stop and suck it up like he normally did when he got upset about something, but he couldn't. The tears kept falling, and in that bathroom, he lost all track of time and reality itself. He felt like he was in a deep hole, one so deep he thought he could not get out of it, no mater how hard he tried. He felt like he would never be able to get over the fact that he had lost everything that he had worked so hard for in his life. He was on his own and all alone again, and therefore his weeping carried on.

Then, after what felt like hours, he finally stopped crying. With a few occasional sniffles he knew he had to man up and get out of the bathroom, and go talk to Pete. With nothing to return to at home, going on another mission was the only thing now left for him to do. Feeling hopeless Rod picked himself up, drove out of the bathroom, and down the hall towards Pete's office. After all that happened, Rod could only imagine what mission Pete had dug up for him.


	3. Induction

****_Hey everyone, sorry for the delay for getting this chapter up. I proof-read like there is not tomorrow : P. Anyway, this chapter is a bit lengthy and all, but things will start picking up next chapter I guess you could say. Just a note, the induction scene in this story I didn't want to make too complicated, since I think the Lemons are smart enough as to who they choose to join them. I dunno, that's just my opinion. Enjoy guys!****_

Chapter 3 - Induction

"Come in!" Pete shouted as Rod knocked on the door. He opened it and drove in, his eyes looking down at the ground. He didn't want Pete to know he had been crying, since it would have been embarrassing for his director to see that his top agent had broken down.

"So, what did the wife say?" he asked, not looking up from the work he had at his desk. Rod had decided on his way to the office that he would not talk about his wife, since he didn't want any sympathy and it was no real business of Pete's anyway.

"She said I could go," Rod said, playing it off that everything had worked out when they met. He wished that all had gone well, that his wife kissed him and told him everything was all right, and that she loved him. But that was far from the truth.

"Good, good!" Pete said happily, then reached into a filing cabinet behind him and pulled out a large manila folder, placed it on the desk and opened it. The front said, "Classified" in big red letters, meaning that this was a top secret CIA matter.

"Alright, where do we start? So, one of the agents at C.H.R.O.M.E, Leland Turbo, has been doing some recent undercover work. There has been a rising in suspicious activity out on some newly built oil rigs out in the Baltic Sea and he thought it was something to investigate. He has reported to us that a few cars and boats currently reside there. And, ready for this? They are all Lemons."

"Lemons?" Rod asked. Rod was not a fan of Lemons, which were cars that had mechanical problems like there was no tomorrow, or they were horribly designed. He personally never had problems with these types of cars, but they always hated him because he was a muscle car, something that he could not control. Like them, he was born the way he was and could not help what he had been given and what they hadn't. If he could avoid being around Lemons when he could, he did.

"Yes, Lemons. Agent Leland said he is not sure what they are up to, but he has found out that a car that goes by the name Professor Zündapp is recruiting Lemons onto these oil rigs. Here, this little flyer is what he uses this to get their attention for recruitment…and that will be your mission." Rod took the flyer from Pete and read through it quickly, then looked at his director straight in the eye. He couldn't possibly mean that…

"You're going to be doing some deep undercover work out on these oil rigs, Torque. You will disguise yourself as a Lemon, get recruited by Zündapp, and then gain the trust of the Lemons in order to figure out what they are doing and who is behind this entire operation. Will you accept this mission, Agent Redline?"

Rod was far from thrilled by the fact that he had to become a Lemon. He wondered how a muscle car like himself would be able to fit into Lemon society since there were so many things about him, especially his muscle car personality, that set himself apart from Lemons. He thought about it and concluded that this wasn't the mission for him, and that he might get caught too easily.

But then he thought about his wife again, and everything that had just happened. He couldn't go home now since it would be too much to handle being alone, and having to go to divorce court. He sighed, and decided that one more mission couldn't hurt. He had become many different cars before, and even though he was a muscle car, maybe he could pull off a Lemon.

"Alright, I'll accept, Pete."

"Good boy, Torque. You never let me down."

The next day, Rod was heading off to become inducted into the world of Lemons. The CIA had made a Lemon costume for him, and it was decided he would become a Gremlin. He was an orange ochre color with a yellow stripe going down each side of him and his eyes were a dark brown, a huge contrast to his sapphire colored eyes. His muscle car engine was now disguised by the sound of a Gremlin engine, with the slow speed to match. As he chugged along down the street, no one would have ever expected that there was a muscle car hiding underneath his Gremlin body.

He pulled into a driveway that lead to an old, decrepit building that was about two stories high. The paint on the building was peeling, windows were smashed, and from where he was he could smell a foul odor, what it was he could not yet describe. He looked at the directions he was given in his disguised status bar under his eyes to see if this was the place, and it was. He sighed, drove up to the front door, and did what he had been told. He knocked and waited for someone to come meet him.

As he was waiting, Rod reviewed all of the facts that the CIA had told him about the world of Lemons. He was told there were many Lemon families, such as the Gremlin's, Pacers, and Hugos and each had a Lemon head, a family leader. For the Gremlin's he had to remember that his Lemon head was J. Curby Gremlin, and he was in the Yellowline subdivision of the family. Each family had small subdivisions, where some Lemons broke off and made their own family lines. For the Gremlins there were about three subdivisions and the one he was coming from many knew little about, so he was safe if they tried to question his family origins.

Quickly he was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a little slam. A small eye slot in the door had opened, and he found a pair of grey eyes staring back at him.

"Password?" the pair of eyes asked. The voice behind the eyes was very German.

"Das Leben gegeben zwar mir Zitronen, aber Zitrone I ist, ich zeigt allen, dass ich zum thee mich prüfen kann." Rod cited, making sure that what he said went without fault. The CIA had told him this German saying was only known between Lemons, and could be used for security reasons if needed. In English it translated to 'Life may have given me lemons, but Lemon I be, I will show all that I can prove myself to thee'. _Or so they think it's between them_ Rod thought to himself. He had always loved how the CIA somehow stuck their hoods into private affairs, and got the information that was vital for his missions.

"Excellent. You may enter my fellow Lemon," the eyes replied, quickly shutting the little eye slot. The door to the building opened, and all he could see beyond it was darkness. Despite this he drove in, not showing any fear. As a spy you could never show fear, confusion, or question your surroundings; it might give you away.

Now that Rod was in the small building all that surrounded him were darkness, silence, and that horrid odor he still could not place. He stood perfectly still, on his guard, ready to strike at any moment if they decided to come at him…

Suddenly a light flicked on. The room around him illuminated, and finally he could see what was around him. Besides emptiness there was garbage all over the floor, old rusty car parts scattered, and for some reason the walls around him looked like they had been messily patched up and sealed with plaster. Rod didn't want to know what lay behind those walls, but he took a guess that was where the awful smell was coming from. In front of him he noticed there was an old crate where a small car stood perched on top of it, watching him as if a vulture waiting to capture its prey.

"Good afternoon. Please give your name, and explain your reason for wanting to work under my command," the small car stated very professionally. Rod smiled, since he knew exactly what to say. The Lemon name he had chosen was the name of his older brother. That way if someone said his Lemon name he would be able to remember and recognize it quickly.

"My name is Darrel Gremlin, from the Yellowline family subdivision. I am here because all my life, I have been mocked, mocked for my design. Despite my grades and achievements in school, they still laughed at me, called me a lemon, would challenge me to races to make me loose on purpose. They also stuffed my hood in the toilet, stole my lunch…you get the picture. Well, now I'm ready to prove them all wrong…that not only I as a Lemon can achieve great things, but all of us Lemons can rise up and show them all that we are worth something to the automotive world!" Rod finished triumphantly. After his speech the small German car nodded uninterestedly, as if he had heard the same speech twenty times before. This was exactly what Rod wanted.

"Hm. Very well. Now let us just verify the name here and I can send you on your way, Darrel." Verify? The CIA mentioned nothing of this. All he was told was that once he stated a name and gave a reason for wanting to work for Zündapp, he would be all set to go. But of course, it seemed that the Lemons were once step ahead of the game, needing to satisfy the fact that the car "Darrel Gremlin" was a real car. The German had pulled up a computer, and seemed to be staring at a list. He wore a huge monocle over one of his eyes, and adjusted it to get a better view as to what he was looking at.

"Darrel, Darrel, Darrel," the German car mumbled to himself, searching for Rod's Gremlin name. "Ah! Darrel Gremlin!" For a second he thought he saw the little car laugh to himself, but Rod quickly disregarded it.

"Alright, Darrel Gremlin, looks like you are legit. Sorry for all that, but we just have to verify that every Lemon that joins us is registered as a Lemon with the information given to us from each Lemon head. You see, we get little snoops trying to get past us; want to stick their hoods in where they shouldn't. And those who do, perish." He said harshly. Then he put on a smile, flashing his crooked individual teeth. "Well anyway, nice to meet you," the car said, coming off the crate and driving right up to him, offering his tire for a tire shake. Rod tried not to chuckle at the fact as to how small this guy was compared to him. "My name is Professor Zündapp, and I will be giving you orders and such when you start your job. Meet me back here tomorrow morning, since we will be leaving for work around seven AM sharp. Oh, and bring your personal belongings, since you will be working with us away from home for a good amount of time. That understood?" Rod quickly nodded his hood in reply.

"Good, I'll see you tomorrow. Darrel Gremlin."

That night, Rod decided to go home one last time. As he drove up to his house all was quiet; the lights were off and Emily did not seem to be home. Probably out with her new man, he assumed. He took out a key to the front door, unlocked it and opened the door, quietly entering the dark house.

Everything was just as he had left it five months ago. Everything was still in its place; Emily did not get rid of anything of his, despite her newly found hate of him. As he drove throughout the house, he started looking for things he would need while he was away on his mission. From the basics such as soap and toothpaste to his own possessions such as his iCar and cigarette stash, he stuffed all his belongings into the luggage bag he had brought back from his most recent mission. Normally when he went away on missions he never took much with him, but after the Professor addressed he would need enough to last him over for a while, he did not want to draw any attention to himself by bringing close to nothing. _It's going to be hard enough acting as a Lemon enough as it is_ Rod thought to himself gloomily. This mission couldn't have been more dreadful to anticipate.

After the last of his possessions were packed, he decided to drive into the living room. The room had a cozy fireplace and a mantle piece that was covered with pictures, old family pictures and many pictures of him and Emily together. There they were, happy as can be at their wedding, Emily feeding Rod a piece of their wedding cake into his mouth. Then there was the picture of the two of them on their honeymoon, Emily smiling as her and Rod lay on the beach in sunny Cancun. Then there was the picture of his family on vacation at the Grand Canyon. His two sons were squeezed in between him and Emily, and everyone was trying to smile while it almost impossible to breath and be happy in the sweltering desert heat. Every picture he saw made him feel sick, since the happiness between his lover had failed and the infrastructure that held their family together had been ruined. Out of spite, he took out each photo, tore Emily out of it, and put it back on the mantle piece. Never had he done such a thing before and he knew it would make his wife upset, but at this point there was nothing he could do to hold back his emotions. Never in his life had he felt so betrayed.

Out of all the pictures he tore up, there was only one that was worth saving. The picture was of him and his boys at a fishing hole, where the three of them had caught the biggest fish they had ever seen. He remembered Emily did not go along with them because she hated that sort of thing, but he remembered that this was the most fun him and his sons had ever had together. He took the picture off the mantle piece, and gave a faint smile when he saw the smiles on his son's faces staring back up at him. He then decided to take it back to his luggage. He knew if he took this photo and it was seen on the oil rigs, his cover would be blown. But as he stood in the dark house by his lonesome he knew it was worth the risk. He wanted to take whatever he could that would remind him of his boys, and to him for the first time that meant more to him than the mission.

There was one thing left for him to do before he left, say goodbye to his sons. He knew that they would be sleeping, but all he wanted to do was see them before he was gone for another long period of time. As he drove up the ramp to the second floor he was sure to be quiet, since he didn't want to interrupt their slumber. As he reached the top of the ramp he went down the hall to their shared bedroom, and quietly opened the door. There they were, fast asleep on their beds and snuggled up in their Lightning McQueen patterned sheets. Rod couldn't get over the fact how adorable they looked right now, and the fact that he had to leave them broke his heart.

There was his first son, Rick, a Beemer and Challenger mix. He was a very creative young boy who loved to play his guitar, a skill his daddy had taught him well. He also loved to write more than anything, and Rod hoped that someday he would become a successful author. Then there was his other son, Andy, a Beemer and Mustang mix. Andy was a huge fan of nature, and loved the outdoors. He was also a very high-spirited car who loved to be constantly active and spend time with his dad. For a while he stood in silence watching the two of them not wanting to leave, but he knew it was time to go. Sighing, he started heading towards the door, and looked back at them one last time.

"Promise me one thing boys, if things don't work out. Please, don't forget me," Rod whispered to them. With that he left, drove down the ramp, picked up his belongings and drove out of the house. Tomorrow he would be far from home and brought into a world where, in his true form, he would most surely be unwelcome.


	4. Roseanne

_Thank you for the reviews everyone! ^.^ I also draw as well, so if you guys wanna see art for this story go to my profile and my homepage will take you to the artz! Enjoy! _

Chapter 4 - Roseanne

The morning air was cool and crisp, and the sun had yet to rise. It was 5AM in the morning and while the rest of the world was still sleeping, Lemons were starting to board the ships that would take them to the Baltic Sea. These Lemons mostly consisted of Gremlin's and Pacers, with an occasional few Ford Pintos here and there. They were all chatting excitedly about the adventure that lay ahead of them, and how this would give them the chance to escape the society that since their birth had belittled them.

The only Lemon that did not engage in any conversation was Rod. The Gremlin silently waited in line to get on the ship, not making eye contact with anyone and being very to himself. Normally he would begin to interact and try to get information, but that morning he had no desire to even open his mouth. After what had happened over the past few days the last thing he really wanted to do was make friends and interact with Lemons, which were some of the most miserable cars he had ever seen. Amongst their excitement to get to the oil rigs, he heard them ranting about being mocked, about how something on them just broke down recently, and the list of complaints went on. Rod was not yet ready to complain like a Lemon, since he had no complaints to complain about.

Before he knew it, all the Lemons were boarded and they set off to sea. For the majority of the journey Rod stayed on deck, staying away from the other cars and trying to let the salty sea air calm his nerves. As he looked out to sea he thought about the mission and the danger that lingered ahead, and tried to put his failed family life behind him. What troubled him now was so far he felt as if he wasn't very good at acting as a Lemon, but luckily no one had seemed to catch on. Professor Z's statement also kept reeling through his head, that if a kind of car like him were caught amongst Lemon kind, he would surely perish.

A few days had passed before they finally reached the Baltic and the oil rigs. It was about midafternoon when the ships signaled to everyone that they had reached their destination, and indeed they had. There were about 20 or so oil rigs arranged in a pattern across the sea, and the sight amazed Rod. He was amazed that an area so big and an operation that involved so many cars had not yet been discovered by the public eye. _Someone must be paying big sums of money to keep this place quiet, _Rod thought to himself. The question was who.

After stopping at a few oil rigs and dropping off a few Lemons, it was finally Rod's turn to leave the ship. The oil rig they assigned him seemed to be the main one, since it was larger than all the others and this was where the majority of Lemons were dropped off. As Rod drove off the ship he saw two cars, one an orange Gremlin and the other an almost lime green Pacer, waving clipboards and calling out "New Recruits! New recruits this way! " Rod drove over towards the orange Gremlin, as did most of the other Gremlins that were on the ship with him. Once everyone was off the ship, the Gremlin stopped waving his clipboard and turned his full attention to the cars that waited in front of him.

"Alright, new recruits! Pay attention. My name is Grem Gremlin, and today I will be assigning you your residencies upon this oil rig. Follow me and listen for your name and once your name has been called, I will give you a key. And DON'T loose it, if yah do, I'll be the one who gets the beating from the Professor. Got that?" All the Gremlins around him nodded and with that, he motioned everyone to follow.

After about ten Gremlin's had gotten their room assignments, it was time for Rod to get his. When Grem called out his name, Rod went up to him to get his key. As he did he noticed that Grem, like him, was a smoker. Just before Rod got his key, the orange Gremlin's cigarette went out and he cursed under his breath.

"That was my last one!" Grem yelled at himself, letting the cigarette fall out of his mouth and onto the ground. Out of frustration he stomped on it, sighed, and then turned to Rod. "You a smoker? You got an extra pack on you? I'm not gonna make it through the day if I don't get another smoke," he pleaded. Rod thought about his cigarette stash he brought with him, most of which he had smoked on the ride over. He had two packs left and he could spare this Gremlin one, but it would have to be for a price.

"There a bar here?" Rod asked Grem. Grem gave him a funny look.

"Yeah, 'course we do. Got every alcoholic drink under the sun. Why you ask?"

"If I give you this pack you gotta repay the favor, since I'm running low on these myself. If I give this to you, can you buy me a drink tonight?" Rod bargained. Grem looked uncertainly at him, and then he looked at the pack of cigarettes Rod held in his tire. Temptation won him over.

"Alright, I'll accept the offer," Grem said, taking the pack from Rod. "Meet me at the bar at six, I'll get you your drink and we can talk. Sound good…Darrel Gremlin?" Grem asked, giving Rod the key to his room.

"Sounds perfect," Rod replied. After Rod got his key, Grem signaled to the other Gremlins to follow him. While doing so he popped a cigarette in his mouth and lit it, enjoying breathing in and out some smoke. _He must be a stress induced smoker like myself_ Rod thought as he took his key and went into him new home.

Up until six o' clock, Rod stayed in his room for most of the day, setting it up as to how we wanted things arranged and decorated. The room was a bit small, but he knew there would be little space on the oil rig so he couldn't expect much. Once everything was arranged he headed towards the bar to go meet up with Grem. Tonight he was going to drink away all his troubles, and hopefully get a jump-start on interacting with the Lemons.

The bar was a small dimly lit room, with neon lights everywhere showing off different types of beer and wine brands. As Rod parked at the bar, he noticed that Grem wasn't kidding when he said they had every alcoholic drink under the sun: there were all different types of beers on tap with bottles of wine, whisky, and vodka stacked end to end. _These cars sure love to drink, _Rod thought amusingly, since he was quite certain they had a lot of troubles they needed to drink away on a regular basis. _And drugs?_ He thought again, swearing he smelt the distinct smell of weed in the air. When he turned around to look behind him, some cars at a table were all smoking joints out in the open. _Guess there are no rules or the law here either._

When he had turned around he saw Grem entering the bar, with the almost lime green car he had seen earlier. The two cars drove up to him at the bar and both greeted him.

"Darrel, I didn't introduce you before, but this is my best friend, Acer Pacer," Grem acknowledged.

"Nice to meet you Darrel," Acer smiled and nodded. "So, come on guys let's get drinking, what do you say? The night is young!"

"Here yah, Acer," Grem sighed. "Long day. I swear one of these days Professor Z is gonna drive me six feet into the ground. Man doesn't like to make us stop working. You know Acer, sometimes I wish we both weren't so highly ranked." Acer nodded in reply as he ordered his first drink. Grem soon followed, also ordering a drink for Rod. Then the drinking commenced.

Maybe it was the drinks he as having, but after a while Rod had really started to gain some confidence. He was laughing and joking with Grem and Acer, and was having conversations with Lemons he never thought were possible. Of course every now and then he had to make up some stories, such as breaking down or being mocked, but other than that talking to these guys for Rod was a breeze. Until a topic came up that Rod had been trying to avoid: women.

"I can't remember the last time a woman ever came up and talked to me, must have been centuries ago," Acer slurred, now on his fifth beer. He took a sip of his drink and turned to Rod. "Same case with you buddy?"

"Naw, was married for a good amount of years. Divorced just recently by my wife out of the blue. Don't know why, didn't do anything wrong. But you know women," Rod replied, then taking a big drink of his beer.

"Sorry to here that, Darrel. See, I gave up on women many years ago. Haven't dated or even tried in five years. For us Lemons it's so hard to keep relationships, since our kind's women can be so horribly bitter. To me its not worth it," Grem said, but then gave a sly smile. "Although, don't get me wrong here guys. I LOVE admiring women. I mean they are gorgeous, aren't they? Its just when you get too involved with them is where the trouble starts." Grem paused and took a sip of his drink. "Its too bad there aren't that many females in this operation. But man, the one that is here, she's a sight!"

"Who's that, Grem?" Rod asked curiously.

"Oh, you will know her when you see her. Her name is Roseanne; she's a red Gremlin with blue eyes and a black stripe. She looks a lot like another Gremlin here named Tyler, but she's a hell of a lot more polished than him by a long shot!" Grem laughed for a bit, recovered and then continued. "Acer and I work with her a lot, since the three of us work very closely with Professor Z. She's a tough cookie that one, and far from easy. She's also really smart too; I think she helps the Professor design and test weapons or something along those lines. Although I'm not too sure myself, since I never hear what exactly the two of them do together. She doesn't talk to me that much, but hell I do love looking at her…" Grem thought dreamily. Acer and Rod both started to laugh at him, and Grem gave them a menacing glare back.

"Screw you guys. Go, go drink some more beer and shut up will yah?" Rod and Acer smiled as they ordered some more drinks. Rod thought it was kind of funny to see that Lemons had secret love interests like Grem had. However, he couldn't possibly see the appeal or attractiveness of a female Gremlin. To him a Gremlin was a Gremlin; they all looked horribly designed and had the bad attitude to match. After that thought was when he heard Grem shout, "There she is!"

What happened next Rod could not explain. He turned around and saw Roseanne drive into the bar, and she was exactly as Grem had described. She was very well polished for a Gremlin and her eyes were a very deep, shimmering blue similar to his own. She looked tired as she drove up towards the bar; seemed like the Professor drove her into the ground today as well. She pulled up right next to Rod, and that's when it happened.

It came over him uncontrollably like a tidal wave. He felt his entire body get very hot, as if someone turned up the thermostat to one hundred degrees in the bar. He felt his cheeks get even hotter than the rest of his body, and when he looked at the mirror in front of him he noticed that his whole entire face had turned beet red. He had no idea why it was happening, but the feeling he was feeling was one he had not felt in a long time, but it was one he could not deny. It was the feeling of attraction.

"How was your day, guys?" Roseanne asked, ordering herself a drink. Grem and Acer started to talk, but Rod was completely frozen. He had no idea why he was feeling the way he was, she was only a Gremlin. How on earth could he feel so attracted to a Gremlin?

"And we met this really cool guy here named Darrel. He's from the Yellowline family subdivision. Aren't you, Darrel?" Grem asked, turning to Rod. When he saw how red his friend's face was, Grem tried his hardest not to laugh. Rod had never felt so embarrassed.

"Really? Roseanne asked, turning to face Rod. She stopped when she too saw how red his face was. "Well, um, its nice to meet you Darrel," she said a bit awkwardly. Rod wanted to say something back, but he was having the hardest time searching for the words to say. _Dammit, Rod! What the hell is happening? What is wrong with you? Just say something! _He tried but he couldn't, he remained speechless.

"Uh oh, looks like Darrel has the hots for Roseanne too, Grem," Acer whispered to his friend. Grem sniggered in reply.

"What's so funny?" Roseanne demanded, confused by what was going on.

"Nothing! Nothing at all! Were just drunk, can't you see?" Grem said, now ordering his seventh beer. He then turned to Rod.

"Well now. This is a good, hot night, isn't is Darrel?" Grem said aloud. Rod was ready to keel over and die from embarrassment, since now Grem was loudly mocking him and the redness in his face had still not gone away. He had to get out of this, if he could just get himself to talk. Finally, he gulped and mustered some words out.

"Oh yeah, totally. But hey, I think I gotta get going, think I've had WAY too much to drink tonight. Need to sober up, take a cold shower, do something like that," Rod said, his voice trembling. It was a horrible excuse but at that moment that was all he could think of.

Grem laughed and said, "That sounds good, Darrel. You rest and sober up and we will see you tomorrow morning for work. Isn't that right?" He winked at Rod.

"Yeah, yeah I'll see you all tomorrow." Rod started to slowly back away from the bar. "Thanks again for the drink, Grem."

"No problem, brother. And thanks for the pack of 'cigs! Sleep well." As he turned around to leave, Rod saw his two new friends giggling like little girls to themselves and Roseanne giving him a far from amused look. Once he was out of the bar he drunkenly sped off to his room, his face still as red as can be.

Once in his room he locked the door, pulled down the shades and removed his Gremlin disguise. He went straight up to the mirror that was in the corner of the room, and saw that his face was even redder than the redness that had shown through his costume.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Rod?" he started yelling at himself, his speech very slurred. "Your NOT attracted to a Gremlin, you understand me? You are just a very, very drunk muscle car who just needs to sober up, and forget that any of this ever happened. Tomorrow your gonna wake up and not have any feelings for that Gremlin, got that? Your gonna forget her and do what you are supposed to do, stick with the mission!" He paused for a moment, a random thought coming to him.

"Out of all the missions you have been on, where there have been many dashing female sports cars, this is what you fall for. A Gremlin." He sighed and shook his hood in disbelief. "What the hell is wrong with me?" And with that final statement, he felt the alcohol and stress take him over and throw him into darkness.


	5. Box Moving Duty

Chapter 5 – Box Moving Duty

It was the early hours of the morning when Rod regained consciousness, and when he awoke he realized he was lying on the ground and his hood was pounding in pain. He tried to get up on all fours, but when he tried the room started spinning and he started seeing doubles. Despite this, be pushed on and was about to drive into the communal bathroom next to his room to get some Asprin when…

_I'm not in costume! _Rod thought as he almost pushed the door open. Quickly he transformed back into his Gremlin disguise and skittishly drove into the bathroom, heading towards the medicine cabinet. He opened it and popped some Asprin in his mouth, hoping that this would ease the pain of his pounding hood.

Rod couldn't remember the last time he had gotten a hangover as bad as this one. Normally when he drank he did it casually and for social reasons, but after everything that happened he got too carried away. Worst of all was that today was his first day of work, and he was nowhere near prepared. He hoped that everyone else had gone a little overboard last night as well, and that his sluggishness wouldn't stick out like a soar thumb.

To his relief, most of the Lemons he saw on his way to work were just as hung over as he was. They all ran sluggishly, eyes half closed, towards what Grem told him was the "Job Board". This was a giant board where there was a list of jobs each Lemon had to do, made tediously by the Professor himself. As he approached it he saw Acer, who was staring up into space at the board in front of him.

"Morning, Acer," Rod greeted his Pacer friend, who gave a little jolt of surprise. Acer turned around and saw that it was Rod and he smiled lazily.

"Morning, Darrel. Sorry about that, I'm so hung over right now that it's not even funny. After you left I had about a few more beers, not the best idea but it was fun while it lasted. I think I blacked out though, don't remember too much of what happened after you left."

"Same, I went back to my room and passed out. Took some Asprin this morning and so far it hasn't really been working," Rod replied, and then looked up at the job board.

"Heh, looks like you got box moving duty today, Darrel. Sucks, that's one of the worst job you could possibly be given. Then again, the Professor makes all new recruits do it at some point. Why I don't know, sometimes I don't know why he does the things he does." Acer then took his eyes off the board and looked directly into Rod's, changing the subject.

"So, what was all that about with Roseanne last night, hmm? Your face was redder than a fire hydrant," Acer sniggered. Rod shot him a glare.

"I was drunk, that's all, really drunk. My mind wasn't thinking straight," Rod replied. He hoped that this was the case as to why he reacted to Roseanne the way he did. He didn't understand why he would feel that way, since he wasn't attracted to Lemons or Gremlins for that matter. And how could he feel so attracted to her when he didn't even know her?

"If you say so, Darrel. We will see when you see her again…"Acer was interrupted when Professor Z came driving by, yelling at everyone to get to work. Rod and Acer exchanged glances and went their separate ways, Rod being far from excited to start his box moving duty.

The location of box duty was obvious; there were hundreds of boxes scattered everywhere towards the back of the oil rig. When he arrived the Lemons around him were complaining, since they had no idea how they were going to move the few hundred pound boxes; their engines weren't going to take it. Rod looked around, not really sure what to do either. Then he made a suggestion.

"Why don't we all try and move one box at a time instead of a few boxes at a time? That way this can be a team effort and no one gets engine strain." The Lemons around him nodded in agreement. They didn't want to do it but had to do something, or the Professor would kill them for sure.

All the Lemons who were assigned box-moving duty were all around one box, trying to get it to move. It wasn't easy, but they were able to get it to go forward inch by inch. Rod was concentrating on putting all his engine power into moving the box, when something broke his focus. It was a voice, and it was one he recognized from last night. He turned around and there was Roseanne driving over to them, her red metal body sparkling in the sunlight and the way she drove was smooth and elegant. Rod stopped pushing and stared, his whole body getting hot once again and his cheek started getting red.

_Shit! This isn't supposed to be happening Rod, stop it! What the hell is wrong with you?_ Rod thought, but his feelings wouldn't stop. The hotness in his body would not tone down, the redness in his cheeks flared and the way she amazed him could not go unnoticed. Without a doubt he was attracted to Roseanne Gremlin, no matter how much he wanted to deny it.

"What's going on here?" Roseanne asked as she drove up to the cars gathered around the box. She then automatically recognized Rod and turned to him. "What do you guys think you're doing?"

Despite the fact that Roseanne was greatly distracting him, he was actually able to get some words out this time. "Were trying to move these boxes, isn't that our job? Unless we have a crane, that would be nice," Rod joked in an awkward way.

"No crane yet, were gonna start building it next week. And yes it is your job, but you guys should have a few platforms with wheels on them to help you move it," Roseanne replied. "Why, you don't have them?" Rod and the other Lemons around him shook their hoods 'No.'

"Ugh, Grem was supposed to get those for you guys. Where is he?" Roseanne then took out a walkie-talkie and tried to page Grem, but he did not reply. Then she paged Acer, who told her he was probably still passed out from drinking last night. Letting out an aggravated sigh, she told him to get Grem so he could help with box moving duty. She put her walkie-talkie away and rolled her eyes slightly.

"While Acer is getting Grem, I can help you guys out here. That ok?" Roseanne asked Rod. For a moment Rod did not reply, since he was staring at her dreamily. Quickly realizing what he was doing, he shook his hood and snapped out of it.

"Sounds like a plan, Roseanne," Rod replied, giving her an awkward smile. She quickly shot him a glare as she drove to an open spot in front of him, where she could help the Lemons push the box.

"Alright men, let's go!" Roseanne yelled as she began to push. All of the Lemons around her joined in, and the box started moving bit by bit at a time. Although he was helping push Rod slacked a little, now realizing he was caught in an even more awkward position than before. Since Roseanne was in front of him to help move the box, he now had a very good glimpse of her rear end.

_GAH what the hell is wrong with you? Stop looking at her and do your job! _Rod thought. He tried closing his eyes or looking in his side-view mirrors at the grey Pinto behind him, but nothing worked no matter how hard he tried. He couldn't pull his eyes away.

Suddenly all the cars in front of him stopped and Rod, not being aware of what was going on, almost rear-ended her. He quickly swerved out of the way just in time and skidded to a stop, and quickly looked back over at her. Roseanne was not pleased, and she instructed him to get back in line. As he did so he thought that maybe he should try talking to her, since that might help keep him from getting distracted as well as getting to know her.

"So," Rod started, once he got back in line and started to push the box again, "does Grem do this every Monday, get this hung-over?" He didn't want to tackle asking about her life straight on, so maybe asking her about a coworker was a place to start.

At first Roseanne didn't reply, but then she finally said something to him. "Yes, every Monday. But he always shows up for work, cause Acer remembers to get him up in the morning I believe. I don't know what happened this morning; cause geez this is a pain. Grem should have had this all set up and ready for you guys."

"Yeah, it's a bit of a pain but we can deal. Acer told me he blacked out, so maybe that's why he forgot to wake up Grem," Rod replied.

"Typical. He was pretty wasted last night, so I believe it. I don't understand why they have to drink so much. One or two drinks should be enough…"

"You only had two drinks last night?" Rod asked, observing that so far she was one of the only Lemons he had not seen wasted that morning.

"Yeah, I'm not a heavy drinker. You know, it runs through our family lines that were known to be drunks and alcoholics and I don't want to become that. Drinking is fun but only in moderation."

After a few more pushes they were finally done moving the box. The Lemons drove off to get the next one but Roseanne and Darrel remained, still talking.

"And I can't let my guard down either. If I get too drunk, I mean who knows what could happen to me." She paused and let out a sigh. "You know, its not easy being a female Gremlin, Darrel, especially here. I'm not safe anywhere."

"No? Not at all?" Rod asked, and then gave it some thought. He had noticed that so far she was the only female on the oil rig, and he then thought about what Grem had said about his small crush on her. Maybe that's how all the Lemons here felt, and maybe Grem and him were not the only ones that were attracted to her. Maybe all of the Lemons, who had not had women in years and were stuck in the middle of nowhere, had no other option than Roseanne. That was why she probably could never left her guard down, or not be safe wherever she went…

"No. I don't remember the last time I could drive without worry, without having to constantly keep checking my side view mirrors. It's always been this way, and I just wish that I didn't have to be afraid anymore." She shook her hood and then looked at him with a gloomy gaze, one that hinted that she knew he liked her and she wasn't fond of it. Rod looked away from her, now feeling a little ashamed. He wished he could tell her he didn't understand his own feelings and was sorry for how he was acting around her, but there was nothing he could say.

The silence that stood between them for that brief moment was then broken, when Grem and Acer could be heard yelling about something as they made their way over to the box duty area. The two Gremlin's eye's met and then Roseanne started to slowly back away.

"Well, they're here. They should be able to help you guys get everything in order now. Well, Darrel, I'll see you later. Keep working and don't let box-moving duty bog you down too much…" she gave him one last glance before driving away, leaving Rod to watch her go. He sighed and closed his eyes, guilt flooding over him.

_Why does it have to be this way?_ He thought. _Why do I like her so much, I just don't understand. Are my feelings being displayed so much that its bad, and now she's afraid that I'll do something to her? Not on my life would I do such a thing….but maybe she's getting that idea because she was…_

No, she couldn't have been. Not a tough little cookie like her, since she seemed so strong and tough at heart. Even though she was a female Gremlin he could see her strength, willpower and intelligence that outcompeted with all the other male Gremlins he knew. How could anyone do something to harm such a wonderful car as her?

"Hey, oddball!" Rod heard Grem shout behind him. "Get out of damn lala land and come help us over here!"

"Right, coming right over!" Rod yelled, off to go help out his friend get the wheels under the boxes, just as Roseanne had said. As he was driving on over to go help, he thought that the next time he saw Roseanne he needed to apologize. He didn't want her to think he was just another Lemon who was after her, but one that would support her and protect her if he could. Alongside the mission he decided to make it his goal for Roseanne to gain his trust, so she wouldn't have to be afraid anymore.


	6. Through the Shadows

***_Hey everyone sorry for my absence, I was away on vacation for a few days! But now I be back with chapters 6, 7 and 8 done with 9 on the way! Thanks again for all the reviews and hits, greatly appreciate them! :)_ ***

Chapter 6 – Through the Shadows

Since that day, Rod had not seen Roseanne for an entire week. Even though he was always hanging out with Grem and Acer, who he could now officially call his best friends, he never saw her even though they worked close with her. Although he wanted to see Roseanne, at the same time Rod had not really gone looking for her. He didn't want her to get the idea that he was stalking her like he was sure many male Lemons did on the oil rig, so he kept distance.

Although he had not seen her, Rod couldn't get his mind off her no matter how hard he tried. She was like a drug he was addicted to, and when he tried to keep his mind busy with other things such as work and looking forward to the weekend, his mind effortlessly slipped back into thinking about the red Gremlin.

It was Friday night once again and the entire oil rig was getting ready to party and celebrate the coming weekend. At dinner that night Grem and Acer were discussing their plans with Rod, who was very excited to get in on all the action.

"Were gonna go to the bar, get totally wasted, then were gonna go to the hookah lounge and get a cherry flavored smoke. And then maybe we can try strawberry kiwi, and then…" Grem went on and on, playing with the food he had in front of him. For dinner that night was meat and peas and Grem, who not a fan of peas, was stabbing them and making loud clinging sounds that kept making Acer wince.

"I like the strawberry kiwi one, that sounds good," Rod chimed in, excited since this would be the first time in years he had gone to a hookah lounge. Just when he thought the oil rig's bar had everything, the Lemons were once again one step ahead of the game with a hookah lounge.

As Grem was going on about his weekend plans, Acer jabbed Rod in the side with his tire to get his attention. He whispered and then pointed, "Look, Roseanne is over there…why don't you invite her to come sit with us?" Rod looked in the direction of Acer's pointing tire and there she was, coming out from the cafeteria line with her dinner, looking for an open spot to park.

"Why don't you, Acer? I think she's a little scared of me right now…and hey, is she going to go sit by herself over there?"

"Geez, you're the one who likes her, but fine I can do it then. Yeah, she sits by herself all the time. She doesn't really like interacting with anyone else, besides Professor Z that is. But that's only when he needs her to do something." Acer then waved his tire in the air and started shouting out her name. That got her attention and she looked in their direction. At first she was a little hesitant and was about to drive away, but then she turned around and decided to come join them.

"Evening, Roseanne," Acer greeted her. "Thought you would like to come join us. It's the weekend you know." Acer looked over at Rod and raised his eyebrows suggestively. Rod ignored him.

"Evening guys. Yeah, I know it's the weekend…but I'm not really in the mood to go to the bar tonight," Roseanne said, looking down at her food and starting to eat.

"Why not? Geez Roseanne, you're no fun. Work, work, work, that's all you do. Don't you ever have any fun? What's a drink gonna do to you, or a good smoke?" Grem asked, a little annoyed. She didn't reply, but gave him a scowl angry enough for him to back off.

For a while all four of them ate in silence. Rod would have said something, but by seeing the mood Roseanne was in tonight he didn't want to say anything that would upset her. He sighed as he slowly ate his food, and couldn't wait to get to the bar that night.

"Well, were all done," Acer said as he finished the last bit of his meat, Grem following him. "We'll meet you at the bar at eight o' clock tonight, sound good Darrel?"

"Yeah, I'll see you guys there," Rod replied as his friends quickly drove off. Now he and Roseanne were parked together, and once again Rod found himself in another awkward position since he didn't know what to say.

"I don't get why they pester me so much about the bar," Roseanne said, catching Rod by surprise. "It's just a damn bar, and I don't like getting piss drunk like the rest of them. Why is that so hard to understand?"

"I don't know, maybe for them it's a comfort thing, and maybe you being a Gremlin they don't understand why your not joining in, yah know?" Rod suggested.

"Maybe, but I mean when I say no I say no. They probably just want to get me drunk so they can…never mind." Roseanne shook her hood in disgust as she continued to eat. "I don't say this to many cars but I'm sure you will understand. I hate my own kind."

This kind of came as a surprise to Rod. He knew that most Lemons hated other Lemons, but he didn't think Lemons hated their own family lines. Then again, it seemed that because Roseanne only had Lemons to choose from as her potential mate, she probably had a good reason to dislike the majority of them.

"They never show me any respect. Walk all over me because I'm a woman, flirt with me when I want nothing to do with them…" she stopped herself suddenly, then looked up at Rod. There was a look of surprise on her face, as if what she was saying she herself had not expected.

"I've never told that to anyone before…I, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be disrespectful, I should have watched before I opened my mouth…"

"Apologize? There's no reason to apologize, Roseanne. That's how you feel, and you should never feel sorry for that, ever. Besides, I know how we can be…but were not all like that…"

"No? Because I've been trying for years to find someone who is decent of our own kind, but I have had no luck. Its always the same…they either want a quick hook up and sex, or want nothing to do with me at all. Story of my life," she said, and was now uneasily playing with her food. It looked as if she didn't want to continue with the subject, so Rod decided to switch it to something new.

"If you feel that way about most of us, then why did you want to come and work in a place where the majority of cars here are male?" Rod asked, a little curious. It was kind of odd that a car like her had ended up in a place like this, working with a bunch of run down Lemons and a close to insane boss.

"Well…Professor Z gave me an opportunity to do what I love to do, weapon design and research. See, I went to college and got a degree in Weapons Engineering, and thought I would go very far with that. It's a very high in demand job, but even though I had the grades for it most employers didn't hire me, since I was a Gremlin." She sighed at the thought. "So after getting turned away from every job possible, I had no choice but to live at home and work a minimum wage job in the meantime. All I wanted to do was something with the degree I earned…" she paused and looked at Rod, as if to make sure he was still paying attention. He was, since Rod had never heard of a Lemon going to college before, let alone being a Weapons Engineer major.

"So one day I got a call and it was a job offering, what it was at the time I had no idea. The employer was very fascinated with my intellect and the fact that I was a Lemon, and wanted to hire me. I thought this was a little odd but I went along with it anyway, I had no other options. The job interview I thought was out of the ordinary as well, since I was asked more questions about myself than me asking about the job itself. Little did I know it was Professor Z who was recruiting Lemons specifically, and he gave me the job on the spot. He promised me a lot of money and respect, and so far…he's lived up to it. This job has made me feel a lot better about myself and my self worth when it comes to work…just not interacting with the males of my own kind."

"Well, that's good you get the respect in the workplace as you deserve, that's very important. And doing what you love and getting the opportunity to do what you love, that's great too. Wonderful the Professor was able to give that opportunity to you. Regarding our own kind though…well, its them, not you."

"No, I know. I just wish that they could be at least somewhat decent. I mean, yesterday when I was working with Grem and Acer, they…" Roseanne continued on, telling Rod about her life of working on the oil rig. Rod, who was fascinated to learn all about her, continued to listen and was amazed by her stories. However, soon after a while he found himself telling stories of his own.

One conversation lead into another as Rod and Roseanne continued to talk in the nearly empty mess hall. For Rod all the conversations after a certain point started to flow, as if the two had known each other for years and talking was a breeze. With ease the two talked about their opinions on certain topics, their interests, and a little bit of their life history thrown in. From talking with her that night, Rod realized that his attraction to her was more than something physical. Her personality and her strength sent him head over heals, and he saw it was who she was as a car was what he really loved.

"Oh no!" Roseanne suddenly said to herself, while the two were talking about the previous Piston cup season, which Lightning McQueen had won again. "What time is it?"

Rod saw a clock directly behind her. "Eleven fifteen," Rod read, now realizing how late it was. He was so engaged in talking with Roseanne he lost track of time.

"Dammit, I was supposed to be at my room three hours ago! Its so late now…I, I can't drive back alone…"

"Why not? It's not that late out, and it's a Friday night. I'm sure everyone is out at the bar, and this place is pretty well lit…"

"Not over where I live no, not this time of night. They turn off the main lights there to conserve energy. And no, not everyone is at the bar…some cars are running about, I know they are looking for me…Oh what should I do?"

In a heartbeat Rod would have asked her if she needed to be driven back, but he held back. He didn't want to scare her, since she might have interpreted him driving her back in a wrong way. He decided to wait and see if she would ask him herself.

"Normally one of the tow trucks for one of the Hugo's takes me back if I'm out too late, but he's away this weekend. Oh what should I do…?" she asked herself frantically. Then she stopped, and looked at Rod.

Roseanne wasn't sure what to do at that point. She knew if she drove herself back she would risk meeting up with a very drunk and probably very horny Lemon. She would have stayed at the mess hall, but they were closing at 12 tonight. There only seemed to be one option for her and at that moment, it was Darrel Gremlin.

"Can you drive me back, Darrel? I…I can't go alone." She was putting all her trust in him, something she would normally not do for any Lemon. But she knew she had no choice.

"I can do that Roseanne, don't want you driving back by your lonesome if your uncomfortable. Come on, let's go." Rod started to drive out of the mess hall, and although a little hesitant, Roseanne followed. Never in her life had she put so much trust into a car, and she could only hope Rod would get her back safely.

Roseanne wasn't joking when she said the oil rig was barely lit; only a few lights shone here and there, but barely enough to light the shadows around them. Rod, who was very tense and now putting on a stern, serious face, was looking around every corner. As they drove along, Rod did see there were some Lemons hiding in the shadows, most of them drunk and waiting. _Waiting for Roseanne, _he thought. Otherwise, why else would they be out and about, and this far away from the bar?

While Rod was on the lookout for rouge, drunk Lemons, Roseanne was very close to his side in fear. She hoped that he was going to do his best to protect her and not turn on her at any moment. There were so many Lemons she had lost trust in because of the things they tried to do to her, and she didn't want to add Darrel to the list. In truth, she just wanted one car she could turn to and confide in, one that would not hurt her. If Darrel brought her back safely tonight, could she maybe consider that he was one who was worth trusting? She wasn't sure just yet and still kept her wits about her, just in case Darrel did turn the tables on her.

Before they knew it they were at Roseanne's residence. From what it looked like, it was a very small apartment where possibly a few other Lemons lived as well. As the two cars were parked in front of it, they said not a word to each other.

Rod had gotten Roseanne back safely, something Roseanne had not expected would happen. For the first time in her life, she felt safe and had someone she could count on. She finally smiled and turned to him, not scared anymore. She was grateful.

"Thank you so much, Darrel. It means a lot you got me back here in one piece," she said, finding herself looking deep into his brown eyes.

"And I also had a really great time talking to you tonight…" she then added, gently scrapping her tire across the ground.

"No problem. If you ever need me, just let me know. And hey, me too. You're a great car to talk to, Roseanne."

"You as well. Hey, by any chance….did you wanna meet up again tomorrow? Maybe we can get dinner and do this again," Roseanne said with a warm smile. Rod couldn't believe she was asking this, but he loved it.

"I would love to," Rod said, returning her a warm, sweet smile as well. The two stood there in silence again for a minute before Roseanne started to head back towards her room.

"Well, goodnight, Darrel. And thank you, thank you again."

"No problem. Night, Roseanne."

"Night," she replied and with that, the two went their separate ways. As Rod drove back towards the bar, still hoping to catch up with Grem and Acer, he couldn't have felt happier. Roseanne was starting to gain some of his trust, and see that he wasn't just another Lemon who was after her. It would take a while, but he was ready to take the time to prove himself to her, prove that he was the car she had been waiting for her whole life.


	7. Wait, What Mission?

Chapter 7 – Wait, What Mission?

After that night, Rod and Roseanne began to see more of each other. Whenever they had breaks in their busy work schedules the two would meet. Whether it be over dinner or casually drinking at the bar, the two Gremlin's began to greatly enjoy each other's company and the awkward gap that was first between them was starting to close. Roseanne had become more open towards Rod than any other car, and when it came to keeping secrets or keeping her safe, she had Rod's trust.

One night after work, Rod had decided to have some alone time in his room. Out of costume and with the shades pulled down, he was watching a movie, having a smoke and eating some cheddar popcorn. This was one of the foods that every time he saw, he always succumbed to eating it.

Suddenly he heard a small beeping, not sure what it was at first, then he realized. _Is that Pete trying to send me a transmission? _He quickly activated his transmission system and tried to answer the call.

"Hello?" Rod answered in a whisper.

"Hey Torque, it's Pete! How's it going? Haven't heard from you in over a month, just wanted to check up on you. You got any new information gathered?"

The mission. He had totally forgot about the mission these past few weeks. He had been so busy with Roseanne and work that he forgot the reason why he was actually living amongst Lemons. He didn't get any information as to who was potentially behind the operation, but he got a better understanding of Lemon life more than he ever thought he would. He sighed, knowing he couldn't lie to his director but he had to say something.

Finally, he knew what to say. It was a little stretched but it was the truth. "No, no new information. I'm sorry Pete, its just…so hard to get info here. I'm still a lower ranked Lemon and information is hard to come by without looking suspicious. I've only learned more about Lemons and how things work around here as a business, but that's all I can tell you."

At first Pete did not respond. Then he replied, "Well, that's alright Torque. Thought you might have had something by now, knowing you. But I can understand that, I mean, I don't want you to get caught."

"No, that wouldn't be good. But really, I think information here is just hard to come by for anyone, Pete. I'm friend's with the Professor's two henchmen and weapons designer, and they don't even know what's going on sometimes."

"Aw see, there you go! Your friends with the top cars working with Z, that's something! You said they don't know anything?"

"No, not from what I have heard. But I can tell you; I am getting a feeling that a lot of the Lemons here think the Professor is their leader. I know its not, especially after doing that background check on him. He doesn't nearly have enough money to pay all these cars plus run an entire oil field."

Before Rod left for the oil rigs, the CIA did a brief background check on Professor Z. He was indeed a professor but due to his design, like the rest of the Lemons, he was deferred from many jobs and didn't have a lot of money. He was an intelligent weapon designer like Roseanne and had a lot of potential, but was never seen for it. Well, it seemed someone found him, and were now using him to run this operation. And whomever this car was they had to have had a lot of money, truckloads of money, in order to run this show.

"Very true Torque. And also I wanted to ask you, you're a low ranked Lemon?"

"Well…kind of. I was when I first got here, but I think the Professor really likes my work ethic so he has been giving me some more complex jobs. Also his two henchmen have been talking about me moving up in the ranks, probably to their level. So we will see…if I can get up to their level, I will defiantly be able to get you some more information. They might not know too much as to what is really going on, but they probably know more than the Lemons I'm working with now."

"Well, that's good. Well hey, keep on truckin' Torque, ok? If there is anything suspicious you notice or you get any information, report it back to me. Alright, signing off, Torque."

"Sounds good, Pete. Signing off." Rod ended the transmission and went back to watching his movie and eating his popcorn.

Although the movie was playing, he was far from paying attention. Pete calling him was like a wake up call; he knew he had to get down to business and start collecting information. But as he had told his director, there was only so much he could do within his rank, and he could only hope that the Professor would allow him to work with him, Roseanne, Grem and Acer.

Just then his cigarette died out, and Rod grabbed another one and lit it. He was only going to smoke one tonight, but with stress put on him to pick up his tires and do his job he needed a stress reliever.

Suddenly there was a knock on his door. Caught off guard, Rod quickly transformed into his costume and cautiously went towards the door, not expecting anyone to come by and see him tonight. He knew Grem and Acer were off doing work with the Professor, and he was sure Roseanne was back in her room by now.

As he opened the door, he was surprised to see that it was Roseanne waiting at the door.

"Hey Darrel, sorry if I came at a bad time…." she started.

"No time is a bad time, Roseanne. What's up?" Rod asked, curious as to why she was there.

"I know its kind of late now, but I forgot the mess hall is having an ice cream social tonight. Would you like to go?" Roseanne asked, seeming a little shy when she did so.

"Of course. Come on, let's go before all the others get to the good ice cream first," he joked, and the two left for the mess hall.

As they headed for the mess hall, Rod was starting to see that Roseanne was getting more confident and comfortable around him, and he knew that now it was time for him to start making the moves. After tonight he was going to start taking her places and asking her if she wanted to do things, since before if he had asked her to do anything she would have become suspicious and run away. But now that she trusted him, he knew she had no reason to be afraid.

As the two drove along chatting, Rod could feel that Roseanne was very close to his side. Curious to see if he could get any closer, Rod slowly inched a bit towards her. Roseanne giggled softly and inched closer towards him, and before they knew it the two Gremlins were touching each other's side. At first for the two of them it felt a little strange, but the awkwardness shed off quickly as they drove along side by side.

Even though Rod had come all the way out on this mission for the CIA, he found himself putting it on the backburner. Even though he was there to demise the Lemons and collect information, it was something he far from wanted to do. He realized that making Roseanne feel happy and safe had now become his first aim, and his new mission.


	8. Her Confession

*_**Next chapter is here, with a Roseanne POV! Enjoy! ;) ***_

Chapter 8 – Her Confession

Roseanne realized it was going to be another busy day as she was quickly scanned the job board, coffee in tire and feeling as groggy as ever. She saw that she had some research to conduct for Professor Z on oil platform 10, which was a bit of a boat ride away from the main oil rig. She took a sip of her coffee before driving off to meet one of the boats that would take her to platform 10, where the isolated research lab was located.

When she arrived at the lab she checked in, put on her safety glasses and downed the rest of her coffee before entering. When she got inside she saw a few oil barrels in the corner waiting for her to start her work, so she opened one, took a sample of oil in a beaker and brought it back to her workplace. From there, she started running the tests that Professor Z had instructed her to perform.

Although she was a weapons designer Roseanne did have a minor in Chemistry, a subject that to most was a bore, but to her was fascinating. She was interested in how inorganic and organic materials reacted with one another and how they played a role in the physical world, which made her a perfect candidate for research. This was another reason why the Professor had employed her.

The research she had been given from the Professor was related to organic chemistry, in that she was studying the molecular properties of oil. Anything that the Professor had wondered about oil she ran tests on to prove if his theories were correct or not. Today, he wanted her to test the combustibility of oil and for what reason, she wasn't too sure.

As she was conjuring up some hypothesizes and running some tests, she heard someone try to enter the lab behind her. When she turned around she saw Grem with some paperwork in his tire, knocking on the glass door. Roseanne put down her work as she went over to let Grem in, who seemed eager to speak with her.

"Grem, what are you doing here?" Roseanne asked as she opened the door for him.

"The Professor forgot to give these to you, its vital to your research," Grem said as he handed her the paperwork. She took it from him and began to scan through the pages.

"Ah I see, this will help. Tell him I said thank you," Roseanne said, bringing the paperwork back to her workplace. She thought Grem was going to leave, but he still stood there, looking at her.

"What? Is there anything else you wanted to tell me?" she asked, confused as to why he was still there.

"More about something I would like to ask," Grem said as he drove over towards her. "So…Darrel Gremlin. What do you think about him?"

Roseanne wasn't really in the mood to talk to Grem about her thoughts on Darrel, but since there was no one else around, she might as well. She had wanted to express her opinions about Darrel to someone for a while, and for now Grem seemed like the perfect car.

"Well…he's ok…" Roseanne started. This caught Grem's attention because to a Lemon, whenever Roseanne said anything positive about a man it was something significant.

"Aw come on Roseanne, you know he's way more than ok," Grem said, winking at her. She rolled her eyes and sighed; she knew Grem wasn't going to buy that Darrel was only ok.

"Ok Grem, you got me, he's way more than ok. He's…wonderful. I've never met a Lemon, let alone a Gremlin, that has been so respectful and thoughtful of me. He has never pushed me to do anything and unlike most of the male Lemons here, I can trust him," she said, her heart soaring thinking about him.

"Aw come on Roseanne, you can trust me," Grem joked, but she figured he probably knew that beyond trust for work she didn't have any for him.

"Well, I do, just not on the level that I do with Darrel, that's all…"

"Naw, I understand that Roseanne, no worries. Yah know, it must be the fact he's a Yellowline that he's like this. To tell you the truth, I haven't met a respectful and hardworking Lemon like him myself…Oh, and I forgot to tell you this too. The Professor says he's moving Darrel up to our rank to be his third henchman, you know. That means he's gonna be living with us."

"Is he really? He's going to be taking the vacant spot across from my room then," Roseanne said with an excited tone in her voice. In the apartment where Roseanne lived, Grem, Acer and the Professor lived there as well, with the Professor having the largest room at the end of the hall. They had one vacant spot left since the Professor was going to pick one more henchman out of all the Lemons he selected to work on the oil rig, and Darrel had been the one he had chosen.

"Yep, the Professor is telling him the news this morning and were gonna help him move in tonight. This is going to be fun, I see many crazy Friday nights pre-gaming with him. He sure loves to party."

"Yeah, he does, but he knows how to be casual too." Roseanne was excited more by the fact he would be living with them, because now she was going to be able to see him more often and actually work with him on projects. She couldn't wait until tonight to move him in.

"I'll let you get back to work Roseanne. Make sure you are back on the main oil platform by six, I think were moving him in at eight."

"Sounds good, Grem. I'll see you at six then." The two nodded and then Grem turned around and left, allowing Roseanne to get back to work. She started running her tests again on the oil, testing all the possibly ways it could combust. While doing so in the back of her mind, she couldn't keep her mind off Darrel. Never in her life had this happened before, but for the first time in her life thinking about a man was something she could enjoy.


	9. New Found Hope

**** WARNING...this chapter is rated M for some explicit content mentioned in the beginning of the chapter.***

Chapter 9 – New Found Hope

Moving Rod into his new residence and acquainting him with becoming a henchman had been a success. Where he lived was much roomier than before and he had a lot more privacy, such as having his own bathroom. Also his best friends Grem and Acer were always around, but Roseanne especially. The two hung out even more now than ever, and when it came to work the Professor always had them working together to manage the Lemons below them. Despite Rod hearing stories that when friends worked together there was always disaster, he found him and Roseanne worked as a team and always got the job done.

Two weeks after Rod had become a henchman, he found him and Roseanne hanging out in his room one Saturday night, the two of them chatting. They at first were talking about simple things such as work, but then Rod found himself talking to her about personal things, things he assumed she told no one.

"I…I need to tell you something Darrel….as to why I'm so afraid all the time, why I can never let my guard down," Roseanne said, showing she was a little tense about what she said by scrapping her tire across the ground.

"You don't have to if you don't feel that its right, Roseanne," Rod replied, since he didn't want her to tell him something that she would later regret.

"No, I need to tell someone. I haven't talked about it to anyone, and I really think its time that I do," she replied, looking into his eyes.

"If you say so, Roseanne. I'm always here to listen," Rod said, giving her a calm smile. She smiled in return and then her face became very stern as she started to talk.

"It all happened when I was about fifteen years old. I remember my parents were having a family party to celebrate my dad getting a new job as a janitor at the public school in town," she paused and then shrugged. "You can guess that my family is pretty poor. Anyway, my whole family was there…grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins…all that. Well, we were all out in the backyard that night. I remember talking to my grandmother about something, what it was exactly I don't really remember. My uncle came over and started to listen to the story, and then after it was over, he told me to come with him…somewhere. I wasn't sure where since he didn't specify. But I trusted him and followed him to wherever he wanted me to go." She paused, and he could see her eyes starting to tear up.

"Where he took me was behind the shed in the backyard, and he...he," she said, starting to choke up a bit now, trying her hardest to get the words out of her mouth. "He told me to get on the ground…I, I wasn't sure why or what was going on, but then he started to hold me down. He told me to not move, not make a sound, not complain or I would get a beating. So I listened to him, even though I was scared out of my mind. Darrel, never in my life had I been so frightened…" Now she started to talk in between sobs, and watching her talk like this was heartbreaking. Rod couldn't believe what he was hearing, and that someone within her own family would want to hurt her like this.

"He…he mounted me Darrel, tried to get on top of me. I went against what he said, and I…screamed. I didn't know why it was happening, I knew what it was but I was too young, why….why would he do that to me?" That was when she broke down. Tears came streaming out of her eyes and she quickly drove up alongside Rod's side, looking for comfort from him. Rod returned it by gently touching her side, and saying whatever he could to console her.

"Its ok, Roseanne. Its ok, you're a wonderful car, I don't know why anyone would ever do that to you…" Rod tried his best to make her feel better but he knew she had to cry until she couldn't anymore. The two stood parked next to each other, their bodies touching for quite some time until she finally ceased crying. Although when she did stop she didn't leave his side.

"My, my daddy heard me, and he came and found me…right before my uncle got inside of me. Daddy chased him away, and we haven't seen him since," she was finally able to muster out, whimpering here and there. "That's why I cannot trust, Darrel. Since when I do have trust, it is lost…"

The Gremlins were still parked together, now not saying a word to each other besides Roseanne's occasional whimpers. Then a sudden feeling flooded over Rod, one he had not expected, especially at a time like this.

At that moment, he wanted to ask her out. Why now he wasn't sure, but for some reason the moment felt right. He had been thinking about asking her out for quite some time now, but he had always been hesitant since he didn't want to rush things too quickly upon her. However, he felt that after she had told him one of her deepest and darkest secrets, one that she had told to no one, he knew that she had trust in him fully, and maybe love. Trust and love was what she had been looking for all these years and she had never been able to find it, and now he was there to give it to her. He knew he might be taking a chance asking her out now, but it was a chance he was willing to take.

"Roseanne….I need to ask you something," Rod started, and the two pulled apart to look at each other. Roseanne was sniffling here and there but she was almost fully recovered from her breakdown.

"What's that, Darrel?" Roseanne asked. Rod smiled back at her.

"Well, I wanted to ask you, why did you tell me all that? I mean, that was very personal stuff there, Roseanne. I didn't mind at all that you told me, its great to get that stuff off your chest but, why me?" The question he asked at first seemed to surprise her, but she looked right into his eyes when she spoke.

"That's because I trust you, Darrel."

For Rod, that answer was enough to pursue further. _If she has my trust like she says, I think its time….Although, I haven't done this in a long time_ he thought, _so I need to be careful as to how I ask her. I don't want to make her uncomfortable and make myself look like a fool._

"Roseanne…there's, there's something I need to admit to you. If you can trust me, then I hope you don't mind if I admit this…" He started getting hot and sweaty and his heart was pounding at a million miles her hour. He gulped hard, and then mustered up enough strength to speak.

"I, I really like you Roseanne...I mean, damn. You're so beautiful and gorgeous, yet at the same time your really strong and you don't let anyone mess you around. I really like that in a girl, and that's a trait that's very hard to come by in most female cars these days. You also work very hard, despite what you have been given in life. Life may have been unkind to you so far, but that doesn't mean it cannot get better…"

Rod stopped for a moment, planning out what he was going to say next carefully. "I, I want to be that car that makes you happy, Roseanne. After all you have told me about the difficulties you have had with other Lemons, I want to be beyond that, and comfort and help you when I can. So Roseanne….I'm going to ask you…" He stopped, swallowed hard again and let the words flow out of his mouth.

"Will you go out with me, Roseanne Gremlin?"

For a moment, the world stood still. Rod was as nervous as ever while Roseanne was staring back at him, a look of total shock on her face. For a while, the two said nothing, and Rod was thinking that maybe asking her out now was a bad idea. Maybe she never really wanted to date, and maybe she really had no interest in him like he had for her. Thoughts kept spinning through his head as the silence continued.

Roseanne stood in shock, unsure of what had just happened._ Did he just ask me out? Did a man that I actually like back make a move?_ She herself couldn't believe it, and for a while she stood there trying to take in everything. It was a little overwhelming, since every car in her past that had asked her out was either a creep or was just after sex. Darrel Gremlin was far from the case, since he was one who actually loved and cared for her, and she loved and cared for him back.

Finally the silence between them broke when Roseanne spoke up. At first she was a little tense and then she was able to calm herself down.

"Well, Darrel…my life has been unkind in many ways, most of which I have told you. I also have been trying to find the right car and I have had no luck, its true. Then again…that was until I found you," Roseanne said, now a large grin stretched across her face. All of a sudden Rod's fears of rejection went away, and thought that maybe, just maybe, something between them could work out after all.

"There has been no other Gremlin, or Lemon, that has been quite like you. I mean…I could go on and on about it, Darrel, but I think you already know all that you have done for me…" Their gazes locked together, Roseanne looking straight into his brown eyes, and Rod looking into her blue eyes.

"Yes, I accept, Darrel Gremlin. I will date you because I…I love you….and I mean that…" Roseanne finished.

"I love you too Roseanne…"

The new couple touched their sides gently again and embraced each other. The love and understanding for each other flowed between them, and at that moment they felt nothing could ever pull them apart. The two had been looking for love, trust, and comfort for a long time, and now it had finally been found.


	10. Tasting Reality

Chapter 10 – Tasting Reality

News of Darrel and Roseanne's relationship spread throughout the oil rigs like wildfire. Many Lemons were very jealous of their love, but there were some who were neutral about the situation and others that supported it. Although the two Gremlins paid no mind to the others opinions and thoughts on their love, they were careful to display their status in public. They did not want to damage their reputation and authority amongst the Lemons, along with the Professor potentially downgrading them in rank if they tried to fool around. At night however, the two would always go back to their residence and express their love to one another, where they knew they would be safe.

For Rod, dating Roseanne was one of the best things that could have ever happened to him. Everyday he woke up knowing there was someone, even out in the middle of nowhere, that loved and cared about him. He couldn't have asked for more than anything in the world than Roseanne. She was such a great car, and knowing that for years she had been looked over for being a Gremlin angered him. If only other cars knew what love a Lemon could surprisingly give.

One night Rod and Roseanne were eating in the mess hall together, talking about their busy day and the recent news as to how Acer almost accidentally caused a transformer to catch fire on Oil Platform 12. Suddenly, they heard a booming voice come out of nowhere, and then they realized it was coming from an intercom. The voice belonged to Professor Zundapp.

"Attention, everyone report to the job board for a special meeting, immediately. Its mandatory," Professor Z said over the intercom and with that, his voice was gone.

"Meeting? He never told us about a meeting. He normally informs us of these kinds of things," said Roseanne, who was now quickly finishing her dinner.

"Yeah, this is kinda odd. I wonder what he needs to address," Rod replied, now feeling a pang of nervousness in his gas tank. He hoped that the Professor had not figured out who he really was, and expose him in front of everyone at the meeting. But then again, he never really felt like the Professor suspected him, so he wasn't too sure what the Professor had in mind.

As the couple approached the job board, it was packed with Lemons who were just as confused as they were. To everyone's knowledge, there had been no problems occurring on the oil rigs and everyone had been doing their job. No one could even guess what the Professor needed to address.

Finally the Professor drove in front of the crowd of Lemons, Grem at his side. Grem yelled at everyone to pipe down, and silence was quickly achieved. The Professor cleared his throat and began to speak, with Rod feeling as nervous as ever.

"Fellow Lemons. I think it is time to bring this to your attention…I'm not sure if any of you are aware, but there are many cars out there that want to ruin our good intentions and work. They do not want to give us a chance. They don't want us working and making a living for ourselves, such as what we are doing out here on these oil platforms. They want us to be miserable, without work and money…just because they think we cannot do anything a normal car can do…"

The Professor's speech started to cause unrest amongst the Lemons, who were now talking angrily amongst themselves about their misfortunes. Quickly the Professor quieted them down, and once again there was silence.

"With that in mind, I think I need all of you to be on the look out for these cars, and these cars specifically. These cars are spies, paid by the government to come and ruin us. And believe me, they will do anything to stop us, so we must do all that we can to stop them. Now, if you do see them around here, report back to me immediately." The Professor then had Grem set up a screen and projector for everyone to see, and the first photo to appear in the slide set was a red Jaguar sort of car. Rod recognized him right away.

"This…is Agent Leland Turbo, a spy for the British espionage unit C.H.R.O.M.E. He has been snooping around here lately collecting information, so look out for him. He's very quick and agile, so no need to go easy on him if any of you need to take him down." The Professor flicked to the next photo, and this was of a sleek, silver car with a moustache. Rod recognized this car as well.

"And this is Finn McMissle, a colleague of Leland Turbo who also works at C.H.R.O.M.E. He has not been spotted yet, but be on the look out for him as well, since he is working with Agent Turbo. And last but not least, the car we really need to look out for…" The next photo then flashed on the screen, which made the Lemons rev their engines in anger. Rod felt his gas tank drop.

"…Agent Rod Redline. He is an American spy who works for the CIA, and is working with the other two agents I previously mentioned. We need to especially look out for this car, since he is a master of disguises….he could become any one of us. In fact for all we know, he could be amongst us now. If any of you see him, or suspect someone of being him, let me know immediately. If he has been out here since the beginning, he knows too much…" Professor Z then looked out into the crowd, as if scanning for Rod himself. Rod, knowing that they were officially on the hunt for him, tried his best to stay calm and collected, but he had never been so nervous.

"Alright, that is all I wish to address. Well, go on, resume your previous activities as you wish," the Professor concluded, signaling Grem to turn off the projector. After the meeting was over the Lemons started to disperse, all of them now trying to challenge each other as to who could catch the American spy first. This made Rod feel far from any better about the situation he was in.

As he and Roseanne drove back to their apartment, Rod now didn't know what to say. He had no idea how Roseanne felt about the spies snooping around and trying to meddle with her business, and felt unsure if he should bring up the topic. He didn't want to ask at first, but he finally gave in.

"So Roseanne, what do you think about these spies running around here?" Rod asked, hoping the question didn't come out in a way that she might start suspecting him.

"I don't like it…I think they should all just let us be, let us work and do what we want. The work were doing here is not harming anyone," she replied, a ting of anger in her voice. "Especially that Rod Redline fellow. What does he think he's doing, coming into our society, trying to become one of us to ruin what we have worked for? He has no right. And you know honestly, if he is amongst us, why hasn't he been caught yet? I doubt a muscle car can act very much like a Lemon."

Rod wished he had not said anything, since now a sudden realization was dawning on him. It was one that he had not really thought of, and he was now mad with himself that he had not even considered it…

Roseanne didn't even really know he was. Sure, he was Darrel Gremlin on the outside, but underneath his Gremlin body was whom he really was…Rod Redline, an American secret agent set out to foil the Lemon's plans.

He didn't know what to do now...should he tell Roseanne who he really was because he trusted her, and she trusted him? He could risk the entire mission if he told her who he was or worst of all, leave her heart broken and betrayed after he completed the mission. Although if he did tell her, what would she do if she found out who he really was? Would she still love him the same, or turn him into the Professor to let him die? These thoughts and feelings now hit Rod like a freight train, regretting that he had never thought of them before asking Roseanne out. Now he felt as if he was lost in some sort of limbo, debating risking it all for the mission and his safety, or for the love of his life.

"Yeah, I don't know either, its kind of odd they would send a car like him out to a place like this," Rod was able to muster, trying even harder now to keep his cool. Luckily they had gotten back to the apartment, and had to go their separate ways to get ready for bed.

"Well, goodnight Roseanne, see you tomorrow morning," Rod said quickly, turning towards the door to his room.

"You ok, Darrel? You're acting a little funny…" Roseanne started, but Rod unknowingly cut her off.

"Everything is fine, sweetie. Here, give me a kiss…" Rod drew her in and the two Gremlins gently pecked lips. After they pulled apart Roseanne smiled and looked into his eyes.

"If there is anything bothering you, let me know ok? I care about you…"

"I will Roseanne, and I care about you too. Well, I think we both need to get some rest now…Goodnight baby, love you." Rod winked at her and she giggled.

"Night Darrel."

With that Rod quickly entered his room and closed the door. For a moment he stood there, feeling hopeless. He knew that the mission and his safety meant a lot to him, but he didn't want to hurt Roseanne. He could never betray her and break the trust he had with her; he knew he would not be able to live with himself if he did. After pondering for quite some time in the security of his room, he finally decided…

He would come out of costume for Roseanne, and expose himself as Rod "Torque" Redline. Knowing that he couldn't keep it delayed, he would do it tomorrow night in the comfort and security of her room. He needed to show her that Darrel Gremlin was hiding a huge secret from her, and it was one he knew he could no longer keep.


	11. The Unveiling

_*** Hey everyone! Sorry for such a delay in getting the next chapter up...I'm in college and just had a crazy semester (Organic Chemistry sucks everyone -_-; ). So as soon as I got back I started writing...so here's Chapter 11! Enjoy!***_

Chapter 11 – The Unveiling

The next day Rod could barely keep focus. No matter how hard he tried, he could not shake the thought of how he was going to be exposing himself as Rod Redline tonight to Roseanne. It was almost unreal that an agent as successful as him would be bringing himself to do such a dangerous act. Although for his love for Roseanne, it had to be done.

Throughout the day, even though he tried to show that nothing was wrong, Rod's worries about that night began to seep through. His worries allowed him to start messing up orders or delivering the wrong messages to his workers, which got him a yelling later on that night by the Professor.

"What was wrong with you today, Darrel? Whatever it is, snap out of it and get back on track! I don't need you dragging your sorry ass around here, especially in your position!" the Professor yelled. "If you don't shape up, tomorrow there will be consequences, understand?"

"Yes, Professor," Rod replied, lowering his hood. With that the Professor dismissed him and he drove away gloomily. The time was drawing nearer, and he still had to get through dinner tonight without breaking down.

Dinner for Rod seemed to drag, even though he was eating with his usual crew: Roseanne, Grem and Acer. Although he always enjoyed being with them and joined in on the fun, he couldn't bring himself to do so that night. Grem and Acer didn't really seem to pay any mind to Rod's drop in interest, since they had been drinking before dinner and were out of it to begin with. However, Roseanne took notice. While Grem and Acer were talking away, Roseanne gently nudged his fender and gave him a concerned glance.

"You ok, honey?" Roseanne asked him softly. Rod looked over into her blue eyes, sighed and quickly looked away.

"I'm fine," Rod replied, and that was all he could muster out. He knew that wasn't the response she wanted, but with all his enemies surrounding him, that was all he could say.

After dinner, the couple drove back to their apartment in silence. As they drove the sea air started to get dense and a thick fog started to roll in, signs that a storm was coming. _Perfect timing for a night like tonight _Rod thought.

As they entered the apartment and started to turn towards Roseanne's room, Rod could feel fear quickly start to grip him. He tried to not let it flood over him, but at that point he was starting to lose control. _This is it, this is really it, _Rod thought. _My entire mission rests on this…I can't believe I'm doing this. What's wrong with me? Am I really doing this for the heart of a Gremlin? What will Pete think of me when he finds me dead because of a female Gremlin? I would shame him, I would shame my country…I would shame myself…_

Suddenly he heard something slam behind him, and automatically he jumped. Quickly collecting himself, Rod realized it was the door to Roseanne's room that had just closed behind him. Roseanne, who had been behind him, slowly drove herself past him and into the room, without turning any of the lights on. The only source of light in the room came from the lights illuminating the oil rig, which were now giving a ghostly glow as the fog began to roll in. At first her back bumper was towards him, but then she turned around and looked directly into his eyes.

"Darrel, is….everything ok?" Roseanne's asked, looking more worried than before. For a moment, the two of them were parked in silence. A cold stillness hung in the air as Rod, now on the spot, was planning a way to explain himself. For a while he thought of all the ways he could blow his cover, and then he finally made up his mind. In four simple words he hoped he could explain it all.

"Roseanne…" Rod finally spoke. Silence hung between them again as he prepared his next few words. Their eyes met and Rod knew he could not hold it back any longer…

"I'm…I'm not a Gremlin."

For a while neither of them spoke, but something happened that Rod had not expected, and had not really wanted. Roseanne began to laugh at his response.

"What do you mean your not a Gremlin? 'Course you are, I mean look at you. Do you mean you don't act like a Gremlin? Oh please, don't let that bother you, that's…" Roseanne was about to continue, but Rod cut her off.

"No. You don't understand…" Rod began, but stopped. Why would she understand? Like the rest of the Lemons, Roseanne was just as convinced that he was a Gremlin. With a statement like that coming from the mouth of a Gremlin, he now saw that what he said would not be enough. He knew what he needed to do.

"Roseanne. What I'm about to show you…" Rod paused, drew in a slight sigh, and continued. "Please understand that what you see might shock you, might upset you, might anger you….but I want you know one thing. I'm still the same car, and I will always still love you the same. Please remember that will never change…" Rod sighed as he saw her face become worried again.

_What have I done? _Rod thought, his heart filling with regret. He knew this was going to hurt her more than he wanted to, but it was better than having both of them live a lie. He knew it was time for her to see the real him, and if he didn't now, it would have only been a matter of time.

Pushing against his will to stay cloaked; Rod activated the uncloaking mechanism in his Gremlin costume. Quickly after doing so, he felt his entire Gremlin body go into lockdown. His engine shut off and then one of his eyelids closed, followed by the other. Then, bit-by-bit, he felt each part of his costume come apart: first the hood, then the doors and then finally, his back dumper. After he felt the last part of his costume pull away, he slowly opened his eyelids, revealing the vibrant blue eyes underneath them. Darrel Gremlin had transformed himself into the American agent, Rod Redline.

Standing fully out of costume now, Rod had never felt so naked. He almost wanted to go back into his Gremlin disguise and hide himself, but he knew going back into costume would do nothing now to help him or her. He couldn't believe himself; he had done the unthinkable. He had gone against all orders by showing himself to the enemy, and now he was waiting on Roseanne's reaction to see if he had doomed the mission, his reputation, and his life.

Roseanne was frozen in place, her mouth agape. She sat parked in that state for a long time, and Rod thought it would never end. He had no idea what she was thinking, but from what it seemed she was feeling a mix of emotions. He could sense fear, anger, and most of all, confusion. She probably thought Darrel was the last Gremlin to be the American spy in disguise, and discovering that she had been dating the American had blown her off her tires.

Finally, after what seemed an eternity, Rod decided to speak.

"Roseanne, are you ok? I…I think I have some explaining to do…" Rod started, but Roseanne caught him by surprise when she finally piped up.

"You're…you're the American. But, but how…" Roseanne paused midsentence, and the silence between them returned. Some time passed before she spoke again. However, when she did, it was with a different tone.

"So…this is how you get your information, don't you?" Roseanne suddenly snapped, catching Rod off guard. "Meddle and mess in the lives of those who have your trust? Who do you think you are, coming in here and messing with those who's lives and trust has already been broken?"

"Roseanne! I can explain, really! I wouldn't…" Rod tried to come back, but Roseanne shot him down.

"Get out. Get out of my room! You're a traitor! Traitor!" She pushed Rod into the door and out into the hallway, with him still fully out of costume.

_NO! _Rod thought, knowing if Grem or Acer or even worse, the Professor saw him right now, he would be good as gone. Acting quickly he turned himself around and bolted into his room, with Roseanne still screaming from behind him. Without hesitation he quickly transformed back into his Gremlin costume and locked the door.

He really had done it now. The mission was over. All that he had worked for was gone, and the relationship he had developed with Roseanne had ended. He knew that within a matter of hours, he would be done with. _If only I had turned down this mission, none of this would have ever happened, _Rod thought. Now in total shock at what had just happened, he drove into the corner of his room and hid in the darkness. He had hurt everyone because of his stupid mistake, and now he knew that in the end, he would pay the ultimate price for not only ruining his mission, but for breaking Roseanne's heart.


	12. Dangle Me Over Hell, Why Don't Yah?

Chapter 12

"Everything ok, Darrel?" Grem asked as Grem, Rod, and Acer were eating breakfast the next morning. "I heard Roseanne yelling about something when Acer and I were in my room drinking last night."

"No, she's mad at me…told her something I probably shouldn't have," Rod replied, not really wanting to recollect the events that happened last night.

"Like what?" Acer asked, with a spark of curiosity.

"None of your business," Rod snapped back. Realizing that he replied a little harshly, he tried to change his tone. "I mean…it's a lot to explain. I…I wouldn't be able to discuss it all in the time we have before work. You know how it is."

"Yeah, yeah, women. Especially her…if it weren't for her rough and tough personality…" Grem quickly caught himself before he could say anymore.

"Why don't we get going now, we don't want to be late this morning," Acer said, trying to break up the awkwardness that Grem had created. With that the three of them went towards the Job Board, and all the way Rod wished that Roseanne were at his side.

To his dismay, the Professor had decided that today was briefing day for the four of them. This was where Roseanne, Grem, Acer, and Rod would report to Professor Z as to how things were running on the oil rigs, whether it be good or bad. Rod hoped that Roseanne wasn't going to use this meeting to expose him, but what would be more perfect than defiling a spy in front of his most trusted colleagues?

Rod, Grem and Acer were parked in a private briefing room not too far from the Professor's office, where they were waiting on the Professor and Roseanne to arrive. Rod had not seen Roseanne since last night. He knocked on her door that morning to see if she wanted to get breakfast, but she didn't answer. He had no idea where she had gone and he had begun to worry. Maybe she had been with the Professor all this time? He could only hope she hadn't…

At that moment Roseanne entered the room by herself. She drove into the room, shot a glare at Rod and parked on the other side of Acer. The four of them sat in silence and a few minutes later, the Professor came into the room.

"Morning everyone," he acknowledged as he drove to the front of the briefing room. He first turned to Grem and asked for a report. Grem handed the Professor some paperwork and discussed about a new gun shipment on the way, and then it was Acer's turn. Acer gave a brief report, saying all had been sailing smoothly when it came to managing the other Lemons. Then Rod had to give his briefing. The whole time he was addressing the Professor, he would occasionally glance over at Roseanne. She looked very numb and hollow, and seeing her this way only broke his heart. _If only I could just get through and talk to her…_ But deep down, Rod knew it was too late to change how she felt now. She felt betrayed, and now that she had found the spy, the only thing to do now was to turn him in.

Then it was Roseanne's turn. Like the others, she handed in some paperwork and discussed her research with the Professor. Just when Rod thought she was done, she kept going.

"Oh, Professor…there is one thing I would like to bring up with you here. Its very important that you know…"

"Oh? And what is that, Ms. Gremlin?" the Professor asked.

This was it…she was turning him in. All at once Rod felt his world start to crumble, and all the things he had worked for in his life began to fall apart. And it was all his fault. If only he had controlled his feelings towards Roseanne and stuck to the mission, none of this would have happened. However, there was no going back, and he was getting what he deserved for making such a foolish mistake…

Roseanne shot Rod a quick glance before addressing the Professor. "There is one Gremlin on this oil rig that has been causing a lot of trouble, and I think we need to get rid of him, Professor."

"Oh? And who is this Gremlin?" the Professor asked, cocking an eyebrow with interest.

"I think you know who he is…we all know him. He's…"

Rod couldn't take it. At this point he wanted to just run out of the room, but he remained rooted in his spot. This was torture, and Rod was certain Roseanne was enjoying every second of it.

"…Gerald Gremlin. Horrible, horrible worker he is. Everyday I check on him to see how he is working, and every time I see him he slacks or messes something up. I've tried to help him but he never obeys my orders or listens to my advice. I think we need to get rid of him, Professor." From there, Roseanne and Professor Z went into a lengthy discussion as to what should be done with the reckless Gremlin.

Rod couldn't believe what he was hearing at that moment. She wasn't turning him in. At that instant a mix of emotions and questions began to flood over him. What did this mean? Did this mean that Roseanne was going to forgive him and let him carry out the rest of his mission? Or was she possibly waiting for a better time to pull the rug out from under him? Even though that might be the case in the future, for the time being Rod felt he was safe.

After the meeting, Rod had never felt so relieved. As he was leaving, he saw Roseanne drive up by his side. She looked around to make sure no one else could hear and whispered "My room…tonight at 7," quickly to him, and then drove off without giving him another glance. Rod sighed; he could only imagine what Roseanne had to say to him now, after her reaction to him being the American spy last night. He could only hope that she would forgive him, but knowing Roseanne she wouldn't let something like lying slide by her that easily.


	13. The Meeting

***_Hey everyone! Next chapter is here, although its a bit long 3: But thank you for all the reviews and taking the time to read this story, I greatly appreciate it :D ***_

Chapter 13 – The Meeting

At exactly seven o' clock that night, Rod was at Roseanne's door. He stood outside her door, nervous as could be, hesitating to knock. He sighed, fearing what was to come, and then gently rapped his tire on her door. He heard a faint "Come in", and he allowed himself into her room.

As he entered the room, he realized just as the night before, the only source of light was coming from the foggy glow of the lights that lit the oil rig. The dense fog had not lifted from last night and in Rod's opinion, it was only getting worse.

As he closed the door behind him, Rod could see the shadowy outline of Roseanne as she drove towards him. When she finally came into view, he noticed that her expression was as serious as it had ever been. Her eyes were almost like slits when she looked at him, and her mouth was fixed into a scowl.

"Take off your costume," she demanded immediately, her blue eyes staring sharply at him. Without hesitation, Rod quickly nodded his hood and just as he had done the night before, he transformed himself from Darrel Gremlin to Rod Redline. Standing out of costume now, he was really hoping that Roseanne wasn't going to use this moment to expose him, or was taping him so she could prove to the Professor that Darrel Gremlin was the American spy.

"So, how much have you told me is true?" Roseanne asked him, without the slightest hesitation in her voice as she spoke. She seemed determine to get answers, and Rod had no hesitation giving them to her. Although, in the back of his mind, he was still wondering why Roseanne had not turned him in. He knew that question would have to wait till later.

"Mostly everything. Anything about me breaking down has been bull crap I'll admit, but other than that, I've been pretty much myself," Rod replied, giving his most honest answer. Even though his nervousness was starting to fade, he was dying to have a cigarette. He wished he could have at least some aid in calming his nerves, but he knew that wasn't going to happen tonight.

"Mostly everything? What haven't you told me?" Roseanne responded.

"Well, what you don't know about me is that I am an agent for the CIA. I was recruited back at the end of the Cold War and have been doing it ever since." She also didn't know that he was still technically married and had two kids, but he felt that now was not the time to address such a matter.

"So everything you said about you being a drug dealer, going into the army, you going through a divorce recently…"

"All true, Roseanne. I haven't been lying as much as you think I might have been. See, as a spy you can't lie about yourself too much…when you're doing deep undercover work like I do, the enemy isn't stupid. They can tell when your making things up, because when you do make things up, stories you tell about yourself might not add up and they get suspicious. Best to be as true as you can be, but without giving out enough information to get you caught. That's what has gotten me through all these years in this field."

"Oh, and I wanted to ask about that too…why are you doing undercover work out here? What's wrong with Lemons working and making a living? Sure, it's not in the most convenient of places, but at least once in our lives we are being given a chance. How could you even have the heart to come out here and try to sabotage our operation when it's doing no harm?" Roseanne's voice was slightly shaking. Rod started to think that this was something she had probably had had on her mind since the Professor addressed that spies were nipping at their heels.

"Well, first and foremost, I really had no choice but to take on this mission. Circumstances made it best that I had to get away from…my divorce." Rod shook his hood angrily, trying to shake the memory of what happened that day when he came home from his last mission. Then he continued.

"The director of the CIA had told me about these oil rigs, and gave me run up of who was aiding in running the operation. And after being here and seeing how things are run, hate to break it to you Roseanne, but there is something off about this whole thing."

"Oh? Is there?" Roseanne didn't seem so convinced.

"Yes. I mean, isn't it kind of odd that only Lemons have been recruited to work?"

"What's wrong with that? Maybe someone has finally seen potential in us, that we can work hard and be as worthy as any other car," Roseanne shot back, taking Rod's comment as some sort of offense.

"Or someone is using your kind, because they know no one else will do the work without really questioning what they are doing," Rod replied. Roseanne gave her Gremlin engine a rev with disgust.

"How dare you! Are you saying Lemons are brainless, incapable to think for themselves?" she snapped.

"Not at all. I'm just pointing out that I think someone is taking advantage of your kind because of your disadvantaged position in society. I mean, do you even really know who is leading your operation? It's not the Professor; he doesn't have the money to pay all of us. Its someone else…I mean, do you even know if your leader is even a Lemon?"

At first Roseanne didn't respond, and her sharp gaze fell slightly. It seemed Rod had struck a point.

"No, I haven't. I've actually never seen him. The Professor mentions him only every now and then, but no one really knows…"

"Doesn't that seem a little odd to you? And my guess is that whoever he is, it's not a Lemon. Not saying Lemons are poor, but whoever this is, they got a lot of money…"

"You just won't stop saying negative things about us Lemons, will you?" Roseanne said, getting tired of Rod's little offenses.

"I'm not doing it on purpose! Geez Roseanne, your making me seem like I'm some kind of Lemon hater," Rod snapped back. He really didn't hate Lemons at all, especially after living amongst them for so long. He was just stating things about Lemons that he had found to be true in most, not all, cases.

"Well, for someone who doesn't seem to mind insulting them, I would say so," Roseanne scoffed. "That makes me wonder, if you think about these things in the back of your mind, how do you really feel about us? Grem and Acer, do you really consider them friends, or are you just using them to gain information?"

At first, Rod had no idea what to say. It was partly true that the friendship he had created with Grem and Acer was to get information. However, he had realized that compared to the "friends" Rod had made on his other missions, Grem and Acer were a lot more than aids for his mission. He never had a dull moment with the Lemon duo, and they almost did everything together when it came to work and hanging out on the weekends.

"I would consider them friends, Roseanne. Genuine friends. I've made other friends on my missions, but none of them I have been as close to as these two." Rod gave a slight smile to reassure her, but the scowl on her face was nowhere near subsiding.

"And what about me?" She paused for a moment, and shook her hood as if she was going to regret the question she wanted to ask. "This whole time, what have I been to you? Was I just a device you used to carry out your…." Rod didn't even let her finish.

"No. Remember what I said last night, before I removed my disguise? I said that I would always be the same car, Gremlin or not. Roseanne, I really do love you, and that is coming from the bottom of my heart. That will never change, even if I do." Rod saw that her eyes softened a bit, and her gaze didn't seem as sharp as before. She shuffled her tire gently across the ground and finally, her scowl disappeared.

"Why me though? How could a car like you ever love…a Gremlin?" Roseanne's question hit Rod hard. After all the love he gave her, how could she think of something like that?

"Well being honest Roseanne, I was not so certain myself when I first saw you. I was so confused…but I've come to realize after being with you, it's not what you see on the outside that always counts. Its what is on the inside. However Roseanne, you are a very dashing little Gremlin if I do say so myself…"

After Rod's final comment the two cars sat in silence. Then Rod finally had to ask…

"So, why didn't you turn me in this morning? I thought after last night you most certainly would have…"

"Because, if you where the same car that I have come to know, I wouldn't have lived with myself if I handed you over to the Professor. Who knows what he could have done to you. I needed to talk to you, find out what was really going on. I'm not one to turn on others that quickly, Mr. Redline, even though you have been lying to me about your true identity this whole time."

"I had no choice but to lie. If I told you who I was right away, who knows what could have happened for my own sake. However, Roseanne, now that you do know who I am, does this mean that you're going to let me carry on my mission since you didn't turn me in?" Rod asked.

"I actually haven't thought that all through. I mean, I can't let you ruin this operation, too many Lemons will have lost the only staple they have in their lives…" She paused, as though a thought suddenly came to her.

"However, if you can prove to me that this whole thing is flawed, I will help you. If what your saying is true, I can't let our kind continue to be taken advantage of this way. Continue your mission as you have I suppose; I'll keep quiet about you. If someone else discovers who you are, however, I won't be able to help you, Rod Redline." She paused briefly before speaking again.

"Also, until you find a good reason that there is something wrong with this operation, I think we shouldn't talk for a while. I don't like how you have been lying to me about who you are, and until you prove your case I think its best we stay apart."

Rod couldn't believe what he was hearing; it was ridiculous. She was breaking things off with him even though they had talked? And Rod had told the truth about (almost) everything and his feelings towards her. He couldn't believe it.

"Fine, if you want it to be that way Roseanne, we won't speak. I love and care about you, but if this is how you want things to be I cannot change your mind. But I want you to know something, Roseanne. The truth about this whole operation might surface sooner than you think. It will only be a matter of time before you come to realize that someone is using all of us for their benefit. And the ones who will get hurt in the end will be us, the Lemons." Without saying more, Rod transformed back into Darrel Gremlin and started to head towards the door. He turned around to look back at her, and her outline was just visible from the hazy glow that lit her dark room. Knowing it was time to go, he pushed open the door and left. As he drove back to his room, Rod could only hope that something would happen to get Roseanne to believe that her job was rigged. Although, after working there for months now, it almost seemed like that would be impossible.


	14. Zil

Chapter 14 - Zil

A week and a half had gone by, and since their talk Rod and Roseanne had not spoken to each other. Rod had felt terrible all of this had happened, but in the end he knew he was getting what he deserved. He knew he should have stuck to the mission, but the feelings he had for Roseanne took over and now he was paying for them.

One morning, after the four of them got breakfast, they all headed for the Job Board to receive their daily duties from the Professor. When they finally arrived, it took no time for them all to realize there was nothing listed by their names. Confused, the four began to talk amongst themselves, until they saw someone they least expected to show up at the Job Board these days. It was Professor Z.

"All four of you, I need you to come to my office, now," the Professor said as he drove over. The four Lemons looked at each other in shock. No one had set forth into the Professor's office before, not even Roseanne. Astonished, the four followed the Professor away from the Job Board, having no idea what to expect.

Rod had never seen such a lavish office in his life, especially one that was placed on an oil rig out at sea. The walls were painted a maroon color, and were adorned with many pictures that appeared to be from Professor Z's childhood. Ornate lamps also were placed along the walls that gave the office a calm, elegant glow. The floor was made of hardwood, and right before the Professor's enormous desk laid an animal rug, with head attached and all. Last but not least, there was a flat screen TV placed behind the Professor's desk.

"My four most faithful workers, there is an issue I would like to address. Roseanne, remember when we talked about Gerald Gremlin?" Professor Z asked. Roseanne quickly nodded her hood and he continued. "Well, when it comes to problems like firing workers, I need to address our boss. So today I have arranged for him to come and speak with us about what we need to do with this Gremlin, and I need all of your input."

Rod couldn't believe it, today was the day he was finally going to meet the car behind the whole operation. _Maybe I can finally confirm my suspicions about this operation, and have Roseanne talk to me again. _Excitement surged through his body, and he quickly began to decide what he needed to do when he saw this car. _I need to take some pictures and record his voice to start. I need to get all the information I can so I can send it back to Pete and bring this mission to an end. _

However, it did not take long for Rod's excitement to be crushed. He watched as the Professor turned on the TV behind him and started to hook up his small computer to it. To Rod's disbelief, he would not be meeting this car in person; it was going to be through a video call. Sighing to himself, Rod quickly prepared to take pictures. Even though a video call was not the best, it was better than nothing.

Professor Z quickly set up the video call and before he knew it, Rod was starting at the oil rigs' head honcho. Although to Rod's dismay, he could not make out what kind of car he was looking at, despite the TV's quality being crystal clear. The car's true form was hidden underneath light blue tarps, with only the engine exposed. Also, to put Rod back even further on his thoughts about their leader, his engine looked as poor and powerless as possible; he was a Lemon.

"Greetings, fellow Lemons," their boss spoke, his voice deep and mystifying. "Professor Z, I don't have much time on my tires right now, so let's make this quick. Which one of your henchmen has found the slacking worker?" The Professor pointed towards Roseanne, who quickly bowed her hood in acknowledgement.

"Tell me, what has this worker done to make you think he should be removed from our operation, Ms. Gremlin?" the leader asked. From there, Roseanne began to go into a lengthy discussion of all the issues Gerald Gremlin had been creating. While all this was happening, Rod was recording the voice of their leader and was able to get one quick snapshot of him. All the while he was so confused…all his assumptions about their leader had been wrong, and even worse he couldn't even begin to think what Lemon could have such money and power. Who was this car?

After Roseanne had finished, Rod watched as their leader sat in silence for a moment, pondering what should be done about Gerald. Rod also observed that Roseanne was looking around the room nervously, and he could only imagine why. Finally, when the leader spoke, it sent a chill throughout the room.

"Send him to Zil." Suddenly, looks of terror spread across the faces of Grem, Acer, and Roseanne. Rod noticed that even Professor Z looked tense.

"Are you sure this is best, I mean…" the Professor began, but he was cut off.

"My decision is final. Send him to Zil. I must be off now anyways; I have many things I need to do. Signing out, Professor," their leader said, quickly ending his video transmission. For a while none of them spoke, terror and fear all still readable on their faces. Finally, as with regret, the Professor Z shook his hood and turned to Grem and Acer.

"Go get Gerald, you two. Darrel, find a boat and tell them we need to get Platform 13. Go, now!" the Professor barked, and the three of them dashed out of the Professor's office. Rod had no idea who this Zil guy was, but from the looks of it he was one to be feared.

Before he knew it, Rod was on board a ship with the Professor, Grem, Acer, Roseanne, and Gerald Gremlin. As they made their journey to Platform 13, the fog that had been lurking around the oil rigs for the past few nights was still hanging about. Every oil rig they passed was thinly disguised by fog, making them almost look ghostly and transparent on the sea. A light rain was also falling, which made small transparent dots all across Rod's Gremlin hood.

As they were moving along, Rod noticed that they had already passed Platforms 12 and 14, with no Platform 13 in sight. Confused, he looked around at the others and was about to notify them, but realized none of them took notice. However, his confusion quickly diminished when he saw that a little ways out to sea, there was a platform that was isolated from all the others. _That has to be Platform 13. Funny, I didn't think Lemons were very superstitious cars_ Rod thought. However, there had to be a reason this oil rig was so far away from all the others. Rod started to think that this Zil guy was probably the reason.

The whole journey had been very tense, where all of them sat in a terror-stricken silence. Amongst them all, Rod was the only one who was calm, but the worst was Roseanne. She had been on the verge of tears ever since she heard Gerald was going to Zil, and it seemed she was greatly regretting even reporting him in the first place.

And then there was Gerald Gremlin. Gerald was a puke yellow Gremlin with a red stripe and green eyes, which were hazy and blood shot. When Roseanne had described Gerald to their leader, she had said he was a heavy pot user and by the look of it Gerald was always, and currently, stoned. Rod felt sorry for the Gremlin, he was young and sadly one of the ugliest things he had ever seen.

After what seemed centuries, they finally reached Platform 13. Professor Z radioed their arrival to Zil, which resulted in their ship being slowly lifted upwards by crane. When they finally reached the platform it looked abandoned. Unlike all the other oil rigs, there was not one Lemon doing work in sight.

"Zil! Zil, were here!" yelled the Professor anxiously as they all unloaded off the ship. Everyone was looking around nervously, especially Gerald, who seemed to have no idea what was going on. Rod, on the other hand, couldn't wait to get a glimpse at this car.

Suddenly, they heard a shallow engine rev that was not too far away from where they were parked. Immediately the Professor tensed up, looking around nervously, calling out Zil's name again. Finally after what seemed a century, a single and large, bright light was shining upon them, and from the darkness emerged one of the most frightening cars Rod had ever seen.

Zil was sleek and black, with the body of a long and aerodynamic sort of racecar. His eyes were the color of steel, and his gaze was cold and expressionless. Oddly too, his gaze matched his mouth, which was thin, small, and expressionless. He was also adorned with chrome, which surrounded one single, glaring headlight on his front end. As he approached them he seemed to glide as he moved, and his overall expression was like one Rod had never seen before: completely emotionless.

"Zil, its nice to see you again," the Professor said, and Rod knew that this was far from the truth. "We were told to bring Gerald Gremlin to you by the boss."

"Ah, this car?" Zil replied, pointing at Gerald. Zil had a very thick Russian accent, which was monotone. "Come with me, all off you." Zil turned around and started to drive away, and the others followed him in fear.

They drove over to the other side of the oil rig, which was darker and more dreary than the other. Most of the lights were broken or on their way out, and trash and auto parts littered the ground. There was a platform at the top of a ramp, which had a viewing balcony and a door to a room off to the side. The oddest thing of all was a giant steel box, which was only a few yards away from the platform. Suddenly, Rod felt a chill go down his chassis as a sudden realization struck him. He knew exactly what that steel box was. It was…

_A car crusher _Rod thought, shivering with fear. He had only seen a few of these devices before, since in the car world they were very hard to come by. Cars that were crushed were normally ones put to death by the death sentence, and crushers were actually illegal to have outside any government use. They were the ultimate form of a torture device, and how Zil had gotten his tires on one was astounding, yet frightening.

"All right, all of you get up on the platform. I'll take the Gremlin with me," Zil ordered, whisking away Gerald. Gerald, now that he had gotten a good glimpse at the crusher, was paralyzed with fear. As Rod was driving up onto the platform, from the corner of his eye he watched Zil open the crusher and shove Gerald inside. Zil strapped down all four of the Gremlin's tires to the device before driving up to meet them on the platform.

"Zil, are you sure this is what the boss wanted?" the Professor asked, stunned that something like this was happening to one of his workers.

"Oh yes. He told me this was the best way," Zil replied, not a tinge of emotion in his voice. Then from a control panel in front of him, Zil turned on the car crusher. The large steel panel that hovered over Gerald's roof began to slowly descend towards him, and that's when he began to scream.

It was at that moment Rod had the largest temptation to come out of costume and save Gerald, but he knew he had to hold back. He watched as the young Gremlin screamed and squirmed to get free, his bloodshot eyes filled with terror. Rod quickly glanced over at Roseanne, who seemed to be frozen in place, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. However, when he was looking over at her, he caught a glimpse of something so terrifying and gut wrenching that he wished that his own eyes had not seen it.

It was Zil. He was _smiling. _The whole time he had been with this car, Rod had not seen one spark of emotion from him. However, in the sight of torture, Zil seemed to be delighted with himself. His mouth was curved up into a slimy smile, and his eyes burned with excitement and sick enjoyment. As he kept directing the large steel panel towards the screaming Gremlin, his smile only got wider and more terrifying.

Time seemed to be moving at a snails pace, and it felt like forever before the large panel finally came into contact with Gerald's roof. The Gremlin had been screaming so long his voice was becoming hoarse, and his ability to fight the locks that kept his tires in place started to weaken. He was now panting frantically and still plastered with fear, but looking much more defeated.

Rod now watched as Zil activated two more large panels, which began to come in towards Gerald's front and rear bumpers. Zil was now smiling to the point that his ugly, yellow teeth were showing, and he held an expression that made him look mad. As the other two panels began to press into Gerald, he licked his teeth delightfully as he watched the car continue to squirm in the crusher before him.

For a brief moment, he brought the crusher to a stop. Zil looked down at Gerald, who was now glancing back up at everyone on the platform. His bloodshot eyes were now bulging as the pressure around his body started to worsen. He tried to move but he was failing, and he went limp with exhaustion. It looked like he was trying to speak, as if he wanted to plead for his life, but the panel pressing on his front bumper made his words inaudible. Rod stood there hopeless, wishing he could do something, but nothing could be done. Zil had death locked in for Gerald Gremlin, and there was no way anyone was going to get him out.

Zil let out a quick snigger before turning the crusher back on again. It started to press harder and harder onto Gerald from all sides, and they could see him starting to fail…

_CLANG. _

The steel panels all came together with force, and Gerald Gremlin disappeared from view. Rod heard Roseanne let out a gasp, and Zil erupted into a cruel, twisted laughter. Shortly after the panels came together he allowed the panels to come apart, and all that was left of Gerald Gremlin was a blood and oil covered puke yellow cube.

"You three, I want you to go clean up that mess," Zil said, pointing at Rod, Grem and Acer. His sinister and abnormally happy behavior quickly began to diminish back to his old emotionless self. He threw the three Lemons some old rags and gave them one more brief, wicked smile.

"I need to add that one to my collection. Can't have it covered in all that shit, can I?"

Rod, who was horrified enough with the whole experience as it was, did not want to know what Zil was going to do with the body after they left. He quickly turned away and headed down towards the crusher, rag in tire. As he and his two friends were cleaning off Gerald Gremlin's remains, Rod was able to quickly get a glimpse of Roseanne in his side view mirror. Up on the platform she looked horror struck, her eyes still wide with fear. Her lip was curling up to prevent herself from crying, which made Rod look away. Rod had been waiting for the moment to show her how strange their operation was, but of course, it had to happen in the worst possible way and leaving Roseanne to take the blame.


	15. Long Live Lemons

_***Hey everyone, this MIGHT be my last update for this story before I go back to college for another semester of having to deal with Organic Chemistry :( I might have time to write while I'm there and before I go back, but I can never be too sure. So, enjoy this chapter, and hopefully I'll have the motivation to finish this story in the near future. XD***_

Chapter 15 – Long Live Lemons

The ride back to the main oil rig was just as quiet as the ride to Platform 13. Only this time no one was shaking with fear or dreading to face Zil. Everyone was quiet and somber, feeling remorse for the unexpected death of Gerald Gremlin.

As soon as they arrived home, the Professor let his four top workers have the rest of the day off. He knew just as well as they did that none of them were in any condition to work effectively. After they were told they had no work Grem, Acer, Roseanne and Rod all went back to their apartment and went into their own rooms, not speaking a word to one another.

When Rod was in the comfort of his own quarters, he removed his costume and began to analyze the evidence he had obtained from the meeting from earlier. He started listening to the voice recordings he had captured and examined the one photo he took, but all he got was nothing. He couldn't figure out who this car could possibly be, no matter how hard he tried. He knew that now it was time to call Pete, because the chances of him getting better evidence than what he had was next to none. Their boss was concealing his identity for a reason, and Rod knew he would probably never see any farther into this car than what he saw on that flat screen TV.

Just as he was about to send a call to Pete, Rod heard a quiet knock on his door. He quickly stowed away all the evidence he had gathered and transformed into his costume, then headed towards the door. When he opened the door he found the car he least expected to see waiting for him: Roseanne.

"Hi," she said quickly, obviously holding back a mass amount of tears. She was almost ready to burst.

"Hey, nice to see you. Come on in," Rod offered, allowing her into his room. He transformed out of his costume as soon as he closed the door behind him, and that's when Roseanne burst into tears.

Rod drove over towards her side to console her, just as he had done the night when she admitted her deepest, darkest secret to him. She accepted him by leaning into his side, and cried as hard as she could.

"Shhh shhh Roseanne, its ok, its ok. None of this was your fault, its ok…" Rod kept repeating. It took her a while, but with a little help she finally ceased crying. She occasionally sniffled every now and then, which allowed Rod to reassure her a little bit more.

"No one was expecting that, Roseanne. Not even the Professor. I think if Zil weren't so damn scary, I'm sure he would have stepped in and stopped everything. But he didn't…"

"Why didn't they send Gerald home?" Roseanne replied between sniffles. "I thought the boss was gonna send him home. That's why I reported him, because I thought that's what would happen, but…it didn't."

"The boss didn't want him to go home. I don't think he wants anyone who works here to talk about what goes on here at all. Surely he knew that's what Gerald would have done when he got home, blabbed about this place," Rod said, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"I don't get it, why doesn't the boss want others to know about this place, especially other Lemons?" Roseanne asked, her sniffles finally stopping and her tone becoming more serious.

"Because there is something seriously wrong here, the boss knows something none of us know, and doesn't want others to find out…" Rod was interrupted when he heard a faint buzzing noise, which he knew was coming from his laptop. He knew exactly what it was; Pete was sending him a video transmission.

"Roseanne! Hide for a second, I gotta take this call," Rod said quickly and almost at a whisper.

"Hide where?" Roseanne asked.

"Anywhere!" Rod snapped as he quickly drove over to his laptop, opened it up and answered the call.

"Oh Torque! Its good to see you! How's my top agent doing?" Pete asked, being his usual jovial, happy self.

"I'm fine. I have some evidence I caught for you today," Rod said, putting up the picture he took of their leader. Then he allowed Pete to hear the video recording he captured. The whole time, Pete looked as quizzical as possible.

"Who the hell is this guy? A billionaire Lemon?" Pete asked. He was in shock; he couldn't believe what he was seeing and hearing. "And that voice, that's not real. Its so sophisticated, its gotta be disguised!"

"Looks like this guy doesn't want any part of his true identity exposed at all," Rod said. "I have not a clue who this could be either, what should we do?"

"I would get the voice analyzed and have you send the photo to me, but its too risky. A downloaded file can easily be tracked and you will get caught. I mean, just this video call is risky enough, but I had to talk to you in person." Pete paused and thought for a moment before speaking again.

"Tell you what. I'll contact C.H.R.O.M.E. They can send out Leland Turbo to collect the evidence from you, while allowing him to do some more investigating on his own."

"What should we do if a problem occurs with us exchanging information, Pete?" Rod asked. He knew that when two agents met, especially in enemy territory, there was always danger of getting caught. Rod knew they would need backup…

"I'll ask them to send out Finn McMissle if I can. That will be the best aid you can get from C.H.R.O.M.E," Pete said, his jovial attitude returning once again. "Alright, well good work Torque, keep on going. And remember, don't leave the oil rigs until its safe, and get any more information if you can."

"Got it," Rod replied, giving his boss a confident wink.

"Alright, over and out." Pete quickly ended the transmission, and Rod slowly closed his laptop. Roseanne, who had been watching the whole time, came out of hiding to join him at his side.

"Something really wrong is here, isn't it?" Roseanne asked him, looking fairly concerned.

"Yes. Something tells me all the work were doing here is fueling something very big, and very bad. I don't know what it will come to, but we need to stop it," Rod replied in a very serious tone.

"How?" Roseanne asked.

"I don't know. I really don't know." Rod shook his hood. All the work he had done had lead up to more confusion, and even father from figuring out what kind of work they were really doing and who their boss really was.

"Rod. I, I wanted to ask you…" Roseanne said shyly, her eyes looking at the ground briefly before looking back up at him. "I know I told you earlier that if you could prove to me there was something wrong with our operation, I would help you. Right?"

"I remember," Rod replied, a little surprised by her remark.

"Well, I think that after today, I have seen that there is something seriously wrong going on here…"

"Oh, and what is that?" Rod asked, confidently cocking his eyebrow.

"How they killed off Gerald, and how they didn't send him home. There's something you should know, Rod, which makes this whole situation strange to me. Lemons, most of us hate each other, its true. Even though we all feel the same about being rejected by society, instead of us coming together, we make fun of each other to better ourselves. It's cruel, I know, but after what we have to deal with day to day we need some outlet to improve our already low self-esteem. It's a bad way to go about it, but that's all we have. Let me tell you though. There is one thing Lemons will never do to one another, even if they hate each other with a passion."

"What's that, Roseanne?"

"Kill each other, if there is no reason to. Now, that might sound silly to you because Lemons do kill each other and there are many gang families amongst Lemons, but let me explain. Our boss is a Lemon and so is Gerald, right? Well, Gerald never did anything personally to the boss, except be a bad worker. That's not something you kill a car over, for being lazy. We kill each other if there is an absolutely good reason, like lying, cheating…you get what I'm saying. We don't kill each other unless necessary because our kind is starting to die out. The government doesn't want us to reproduce anymore by making our parts not available, and not providing us with prenatal care to carry a child to full term." Roseanne paused to see if Rod was still with her, and then continued.

"What happened to Gerald was senseless, and our boss is no ordinary Lemon for taking on an action like that. Like you said, it seems he like doesn't want anyone finding out about our operation. I didn't loose you, did I?"

Rod shook his hood 'no'. It made sense, why kill off a car like Gerald for no reason when the Lemon population was already so small and dwindling? Therefore, and Rod was sure Grem, Acer and the Professor saw it as well, the boss' decision to kill a fairly innocent Lemon was unjust, and fairly odd.

"Well, now that is said and done I need to ask you, Rod Redline. Do you want me to help you out with your mission? I know I said I would help you, and I am willing to do anything that will keep my kind from further harm." Roseanne gave him a faint, weary smile. Rod knew all of this was a lot on her, and he wanted to do what he could to help her and her best interests.

"I would love you to help me, Roseanne. The more information we can collect together, the closer we will be to figuring out what really is going on here," Rod replied, returning a smile back to her. She quickly drove up into his side and he embraced her.

"Thank you, that means so much to me. Also, I'm sorry for everything…"

"Don't be, you had every reason to feel upset. I was the one who lied to you, and now I'm ready to make up for everything I have done. I'll do what I can to help."

"And I will as well. We need to do everything we possibly can to keep our kind from being shamed or destroyed any further. Long live lemons, Rod Redline."

"Long live lemons." Rod couldn't believe it; he was now seeing that the perspective of his mission had changed. In the beginning it was to demise these cars and crush their plans, but now it was to protect their well-being. Never in a million years had Rod thought that he would be trying to help Lemons prosper and protect them. And now here he was.


	16. In the Eye of the Beholder

_*****Hey everyone, I'm done with college for the semester so that means MOAR Thicker Than Oil! Sorry for the long delay, hope you guys enjoy this next chapter and more is to come!****_

Chapter 16 –In the Eye of the Beholder

For the next couple of weeks, Roseanne and Rod began to exchange the information they had gathered. Roseanne shared the research she conducted by secretly taking notes from her lab, and giving them to Rod for him to analyze. Rod in exchange shared the photo and voice recordings he had, along with the background checks of the Professor and the other Lemons he received from the CIA. A few nights a week, in the privacy of Roseanne's room, the two cars congregated to share the information they received, and if any conclusions could be made from what they were able to piece together.

At the same time, not only were they becoming closer coworkers when it came to sharing secret information, but their relationship started to strengthen again. Roseanne was beginning to accept the fact she was helping and dating the spy, and was gladly accepting Rod back into her life. Just as they had done before Rod exposed himself as the American agent, they started to get breakfast together again, worked and managed together, and spend their weekends and nights together as if nothing had changed. Rod was happy that Roseanne was able to see past him being a spy and a muscle car, and finding love and compassion in him beyond what she probably ever thought possible in her life.

One night Rod was in his room by himself, analyzing the research data Roseanne had given him from the other night. He was desperately trying to piece everything together, but it was almost impossible. Roseanne's research wasn't matching up with the work they were doing, which for the most part was harvesting oil and maintaining the platforms.

Roseanne's research consisted of creating different forms of refined oil, and testing which form would be the most combustible under radiation exposure. Apparently, from what Rod was told, Roseanne had found the perfect variant of oil that would combust with ease. After her discovery, the Professor collected the data from her and told her he was going to apply it somewhere, but she had no idea how her findings were put into action. Rod found this very odd, but what was even stranger was that none of the oil that they were drilling was being refined into Roseanne's combustible oil; it was produced into normal, everyday oil found at any common gas station.

Rod's big question was who would ever want to produce combustible oil? That would be highly dangerous, since if a car were exposed to radiation, they would surely explode within an instant.

Roseanne also told him that recently at a meeting she had with the Professor and their leader, she heard of new oil company that was coming into play to compete with their own, and it was called "Allinol". It was an alternative fuel created by Sir Miles Axelrod, an electric car that had a dream to change the automotive world by introducing a fuel that was not only clean to protect the environment, but a fuel that was healthy for cars. The boss was furious that Axelrod was developing such a revolutionary product, since it would decrease the need of normal refined oil, and would put him and all the Lemons out of business. Unfortunately, that was all Roseanne had heard, but Rod was starting to see that maybe this combustible oil Roseanne had created could possibly be used to oust out Allinol. How, Rod was not sure.

Tired and out of ideas, Rod put down his work and decided to go visit Roseanne. He transformed back into his Gremlin costume and made his way to Roseanne's door, where he knocked and was quickly allowed in.

Roseanne's room was lightly lit and colorful, and smelled delightfully of citrus. The blinds on her window were down, and as Rod drove in, she locked the door behind him. As he transformed out of his costume, Rod watched her as she glided across the room, her beautifully polished body glistening and shining in the light. For some reason that night she looked stunning, and at that moment Rod had the greatest urge to be intimate with her. However, he knew he had to hold back, since Roseanne decided most of the time if he was allowed to make any moves.

"Found anything yet?" she asked, her beautiful blue eyes twinkling and looking straight at him.

"Not yet, trying to piece everything together and not having an easy time. What about you?" Rod asked, returning her gaze. Their eyes locked and Rod felt the feeling of intimacy again, but had to suppress it.

"Not having too much luck either…" Roseanne replied, her eyes still locked with Rod's. She then slowly began to get closer to him. Rod noticed and began to approach her as well, her eyes not leaving his sight. The two were almost touching bumpers, and Rod's desire for intimacy was rising and becoming harder to suppress. His heart was pounding, his mouth was getting dry, he started getting shaky on his tires. He slowly began to close his eyes, and carefully began to reach for her mouth, hoping she would return his intimacy and desire…

The two cars locked lips. Rod's body got hotter and his heart was now racing wildly, which made him begin to work his way into her mouth. She allowed him in, and before he knew it his tongue was touching hers. Their tongues danced around sensually, and their love intensified by the minute. Rod then stroked his teeth with her bottom lip and reentered her again, and she did the same. Rod stroked the side of her front bumper as he continued to kiss her, and she stroked the side of his in such a gentle yet suggestive way that it made his whole body shiver with delight. As they kissed, there seemed to be a harmony between them, as if they had always known each other, as if they had been doing this for years.

Suddenly, a siren started blasting through the air. The two lovers broke from their intimate moment at once, and both exchanged glances. Although he was still burning with desire and his body was on fire, Rod knew just as well as Roseanne that they couldn't ignore an alarm and had to act at once. Before Rod went back into his Gremlin costume the two cars exchanged a kiss, and within the next minute they were out the door and heading towards the center of the oil platform.

Lemons were crowded around the center of the platform, looking as confused as Rod and Roseanne were. Rod, who was still trying to tone down the hotness that lingered within him, started asking other Lemons what was going on, but no one had a clue.

"I don't see Grem or Acer anywhere, do you?" Roseanne asked. Rod looked around, and noticed that they weren't amongst the Lemons around them.

"No, that's strange. What's…" Before Rod could finish, he heard Grem and Acer shouting at the top of their lungs as they started to approach them.

"INTRUDER! THERE'S AN INTRUDER HERE ON PLATFORM 5!" Grem barked at every car as he passed. "Get off your damn asses and start searching! GO!" Rod saw Lemons begin to scatter, racing off into all different directions.

As they were passing, Rod was able to flag Grem and Acer down. They seemed irate beyond reason, and Rod knew he couldn't keep them for too long.

"Where's the intruder?" Rod asked.

"We saw him sneaking behind the back of the bar, he's taken off somewhere but we believe he's still around here and on the run. Where trying to corner him," Acer replied, seeming a little edgy to take off.

"What kind of car is it? Do any of us know him?" Rod asked again, hoping the intruder wasn't who he thought it was...

What Rod heard next made his gas tank drop, and any hotness that remained within him was quickly extinguished. The worst of fears were confirmed.

"Agent Leland Turbo," Grem replied. Without another word, both Grem and Acer sped off in hot pursuit for the British spy, leaving Rod feeling as lost as he had ever been.


	17. Leland Turbo

Chapter 17- Leland Turbo

"_Shit," _Rod cursed to himself. Roseanne quickly looked over at him.

"Leland? You know Leland?" she asked at a whisper.

"Yes. I was supposed to pass off the photo I took to him to get it analyzed, that's why he's here. Crap, what am I gonna do now?" Rod began to panic. He was supposed to hand off the information, but now that Leland had every Lemon on the oil rig chasing after him that would be impossible. He could only hope that Leland had gotten in touch with Finn McMissle to come collect the photo instead, or their whole mission would be compromised…

"What should we do?" Roseanne asked. She started to get panicked too.

"Well, if we don't start chasing after him, it's going to make us look suspicious. We had better get a move on. Other than that, I don't know how I'm gonna pass off anything to him. He was supposed to contact me when he got here, since he doesn't know who I am as a Gremlin. I don't know what went wrong, how he got caught…" Unfortunately, Rod knew that as a spy you could be the best there is and still get caught; it all depended on the enemy you were facing. Rod knew Leland was a very skillful British agent, and he hoped that his career wasn't going to end here.

Before they knew it, Roseanne and Rod were racing all over the oil platform like the other Lemons, on the search for Leland. Rod was hoping he could reach Leland first, but he felt that the chances of that happening were very slim.

Everyone was in frenzy, yelling and screaming at each other and behaving like Rod had never seen them before. All of the Lemons seemed savage and bloodthirsty, hungry to kill, shouting profanities and death scenarios for the British spy. A lot of Lemons wanted to throw him into the ocean, bleed him out, or crush him to a pulp for even thinking about coming and snooping around. It kept going on and on and Rod tried to block them out, but the anger the Lemons were creating was so overpowering that it seemed the devil was speaking himself.

Before Rod knew it, he heard a painful scream and victorious shouting coming from somewhere in the back of the oil platform. As Rod and Roseanne approached the noise, they saw a large circle of Lemons surrounding three cars. As Rod pushed his way into the circle he was horrified at the sight he laid his eyes upon.

Grem, Acer, and Leland were all fighting each other. It seemed his two friends had disarmed all of Leland's weapons, and were beating him to a pulp. Never before had he seen so much strength come from any Lemon, making it seem rather unnatural. Grem kept smashing him from the left side, and Acer from the right. Leland tried to attack them back, but each time he went to strike he was blocked from either of the two cars.

They created dent after dent on Leland's body, causing him to loose strength. The Lemons around him were cheering and shouting, all their faces curved up into wicked smiles or scowls of hatred. Rod watched as Grem took one more blow into Leland's side, sending him to the ground. Leland now lay beaten and bleeding on the ground, trying to hold onto his consciousness.

Rod didn't know what to do. He didn't know if he should jump in and save his fellow colleague, or let him be destroyed to keep the mission from being compromised further. Rod pondered a moment, and decided to make a move. If Leland agreed that he would need saving, Rod would do it.

Looking around cautiously, Rod made sure no one was paying attention for what he was about to do. He looked over at Leland and made a slight hood gesture to get his attention. Leland, although he was close to loosing consciousness, caught on and quickly glanced over at Rod. Now that Rod had Leland's attention, he looked around him to make sure no one would catch him making his next move.

Rod quickly mouthed, "_Its me, I'm the American._" In response, he saw Leland's eyes widen in horror. Leland began to violently shake his hood "no" as he looked over at Rod, which caused a stir. Rod automatically backed off.

"What the hell is your problem, STAY DOWN!" Grem shouted, knocking Leland across the hood. That was it, the final blow. All movement from Leland ceased as he slipped out of consciousness, and now his body lay limp on the ground. The Lemons around him cheered with victory. Amongst the shouts Rod heard the Professor approach the crowd, telling them to all quiet down.

"Well done, Grem," the Professor said as he approached, and Grem bowed his hood with pride. "Take him to Zil, I already have a boat ready for you. Take Acer and Darrel with you as well. Make him talk, and get as much out of him as we can. If he can help us root out any other spies, it will be to our advantage." Rod's whole body froze. He had to interrogate one of his own? He would have said no, but he had to go along with it, he didn't want to get caught now. He helped Grem and Acer drag Leland's body towards the ship, which would bring them face to face with Zil again.

By the time they got to Zil's oil platform and strapped him down into the car crusher, Leland had regained consciousness. He looked numb and unfazed by anything at this point, knowing he was probably about to die.

"I know what you want, but I'm not going to give it to you," Leland said mockingly as Zil stared down at him with his emotionless glare.

"Oh you will, don't you worry about that. We can get anything out of anyone," Grem replied sharply. Rod had never heard him be so harsh before.

"Well, I wish you fair luck ol' chaps," Leland said, giving them a weary and confident smile. After Leland made that statement, Zil brought the crusher to life and just how it had been with Gerald, the large metal panel started to close in on Leland's roof.

"So, explain yourself. Why were you snooping around here? What business do you have messing within our affairs?" Grem asked coldly, staring Leland down.

"Why should I tell a filthy Lemon like you? I can go where I want and where I like. Why shouldn't I be able to wander around here?" Leland replied, not letting his bravado down. Grem was far from happy with this answer, and commanded Zil to bring the metal panel down closer to his roof.

For the next few minutes Grem and Acer and unfortunately, Rod himself, continued to interrogate Leland, but had no luck getting anything out of him. Out of ideas of what to do now and with Leland being a few inches away from death, they knew they were running out of time and they needed to get _something _out of him.

"Do you think we can get Zil to get anything out of him?" Acer asked. During the entire interrogation Zil had not said a word, but his sick grin had been as wide and ugly as ever.

"He's scary enough, we could give that a try. What do you think, Darrel?" Grem asked Rod. Rod had tried to keep quiet best he could, but he knew he had to speak.

"Sure, it might work," was all Rod could muster out. From there, Grem turned to Zil and spoke to him, and Zil's smile became even wider than before. He looked straight down at Leland, who was almost surrounded by metal panels now. His gaze alone made Leland shake in terror.

"Talk, talk now!" Zil yelled down to the British agent, his thick Russian accent echoing across the oil rig. He started up the car crusher again, and it began to press into Leland's back end and roof. Leland started to wince in pain, but he didn't seem to backing down.

"You will never get anything out of me!" Leland shouted with all his strength, still resisting. However, Zil continued to press on.

"Who are you working for? Who sent you? Is there someone who you are in contact with here on the inside?" Zil paused, his smile now going sour. It seemed that he knew exactly what to do now to get the information he wanted.

"Last name is Turbo, isn't it? British, eh?" Leland looked up at Zil quizzically, not sure what he was getting at. He shook his hood 'yes' with the limited room he had left in the car crusher.

"And you live on 38 Williamson Drive in London, don't you? With a wife and two kids?" Leland's eyes widened with horror at Zil's statement.

"How…how do you know this?" Leland asked. "How do you know where I live and about my family?"

"Oh, I know lot's of things, nothing for you to worry about, Mr. Turbo. However, there is one thing you SHOULD worry about. If you don't give me ANY information before this crusher turns you into a cube, I will assure they will all be dead by sunrise. I have my connections back in London, Mr. Turbo." Zil then began to laugh hysterically, his sickening laugh echoing all over Platform 13.

"NO! Not my family, you will NOT touch my family!" Leland howled back, despite his body being almost rendered useless.

"Not unless you talk," Zil said, ceasing his laugher automatically. He brought the plates of the crusher closer and closer together, and the sound of Leland's metal body could be heard crunching as he neared closer to his death. Then, Leland finally spoke through a muffled and defeated voice.

"I'm working with someone on the inside. Rod…Rod Redline. I was supposed to collect information from him. He's one of your own, he's one…" Before Leland could finish the plates came together…

_CLANG. _

Leland was gone.

"That's just enough information, is it not?" Zil asked, his emotionless state returning. Grem and Acer were looking at each other, shocked beyond belief.

"Rod Redline? He's HERE, and one of our own? But HOW?" Grem asked. "Every Lemon who came through here had to go through an interrogation process with Z, there's no way he could have passed that."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Rod Redline is a stealthy one, a trickster. I knew him back during the Cold War, when he was just starting out. He ruined my top operation when I was trying to make an arms deal with the United States, but he found his way in and foiled everything. He's the reason why I'm HERE," Zil stated. The three Lemons glared at him, since he usually never spoke a word unless it was to interrogate or to laugh at someone's pain and suffering.

"I wouldn't be surprised that he is amongst your own. If he was able to convince Z he was a Lemon, then he could convince anyone. I would start looking for him now if I were you, who knows who he could be and how much he already knows…" Without Grem and Acer looking, Zil shot a menacing glare at Darrel. Rod flinched.

"Head on back, I'll take care of Leland for you," Zil said, motioning them off. The three Lemons then started to head back towards the ship, with Grem and Acer quarreling about who they thought Rod Redline could be.

"Maybe Jenson, he's a suspicious looking fellow. Always likes to hide out behind the bar…"

"Or Keith, he always likes to hang out in his room, he never hangs out with the others…"

As the two quarreled on Rod remained quiet. Now that everyone was going to know that he was on the oil platforms, the hunt for him would begin. He knew he would have to act his normal self and try not to draw attention when he could….

Rod then thought about Leland, and how he couldn't have saved him even if he tried. One of the greatest British agents in the world was gone, and there was nothing he could do to get him back. Zil had done him in and threatened his family, his weak point, since it was one of the most precious things Leland had in his life.

And then there was Zil. How did Rod not know who he was, when it was true that he did undermine a US and Soviet Union deal back during the Cold War? He had never seen Zil before in his life…

His mind kept whirling with thoughts as they boarded the ship that would take them back to Platform 5. He knew the first car he was going to talk to when he got back and the only car he could now trust, Roseanne.


	18. Night on the Oil Rig

Chapter 18 – Night on the Oil Rig

The days passed by slowly following Leland's death, each day droning into the other. Rod could not shake the feeling of sorrow for his lost colleague, since the world had lost one of its greatest agents and he felt he was to blame.

The hunt for Rod had also begun. As soon as the Lemons heard that he was amongst them, harsh interrogations had started. Even the most innocent of Lemons was battered to reveal their true identity. The Lemon community was starting to fall apart with everyone pointing tires at each other trying to root out the American spy, and all Rod could do was watch. He couldn't risk the mission but at the same time felt horrible he was the one causing all the trouble.

One morning at work, while Rod and Roseanne were managing box-moving duty, the Professor announced for everyone to come to the center of the oil platform. All the Lemons stormed to where the job board was located, and all were eager to hear if Rod Redline had been captured yet.

"Fellow Lemons," the Professor began, the crowd of Lemons around him jumping up and down with excitement. "We have not caught Rod Redline yet." Suddenly the crowd's enthusiasm fell like a rock.

"But, I have an important announcement to make. I am selecting a great number of you from Platform 5 to come with my henchmen and I to Japan. A race that will be used to support our competitor Allinol, the World Grand Prix, will be held in Japan to start and travel through Italy and England. Our leader wants us to be at this race from start to finish."

"Why? Why should we care about some silly old race?" asked a young Pacer from the crowd.

"That is an order from our leader and you, like all the other Lemons, should obey it. Understood?" Professor Z barked. The young Pacer lowered his eyes and shook his hood 'yes' in reply.

"Good. We are heading out tomorrow night. We will be taking three of our ships to Japan." Then the Professor turned to his henchmen beside him. "Grem, Acer, Darrel…you three are coming with me. Roseanne, you will stay behind and man the operation of the oil platforms."

"Wait, why can't I go along with the rest of you?" Roseanne asked, looking a little hurt. She briefly looked at Rod and he knew the real reason she didn't want to stay behind. She wanted to look after him.

"You are the only one I trust to run everything smoothly and efficiently while I'm gone. Alright then, everyone back to work. Throughout the day we will go along and select who we want to come with us. Then tomorrow you will be away from your daily duties to help us prepare for our voyage. Got it?" The Lemons all agreed, and Professor Z dismissed them back to their usual duties. As Rod and Roseanne were on their way back to box moving duty, they exchanged worried glances.

"What are we going to do?" Roseanne asked Rod, who was now in complete dismay.

"We can't talk about this right now, Roseanne. Meet me at my room around 10 o' clock tonight, and then we can discuss what we need to," Rod replied. Roseanne nodded her hood in understanding as the two cars went back to managing box moving duty.

At 10 o'clock that night Roseanne stopped by Rod's room. Rod greeted her at the door and then had her follow him out of the apartment. They drove towards the back of the oil rig, and Rod made sure to avoid any main route to get there as much as possible. They finally arrived in the area where they were just that morning: box-moving duty. Rod and Roseanne hid behind a group of boxes to keep out of sight.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Roseanne asked with worry.

"Of course. I know where every camera on this oil rig is, since I had to take over surveillance duty for Grem one night. And I'm pretty sure we avoided every single one on the way over here…" Then suddenly Rod did something Roseanne did not expect…he came out of his Gremlin costume.

"ROD! What are you doing? Do you want to get caught with everyone on your tail now?" Roseanne asked furiously.

"No one will find us over here, Roseanne. I think were safe…" Rod paused and pulled out a cigarette. He lit it and put it in his mouth while Roseanne looked at him with disapproval. "Sorry dear, but I need one right now." He breathed in and let out a puff of smoke, which clouded the air around him.

"So, I think we need to discuss what we need to do now since I won't be coming along with you…." Roseanne started before being interrupted by Rod.

"There is nothing to discuss about that, Roseanne. What's done is done. The Professor isn't letting you come with us and we can't change that."

"I know, but…I may never see you again, Rod…" Roseanne paused and lowered her hood. "When you complete the mission and they find out who you are, you probably aren't going to be able to come back. And I may not be able to leave. This is my job and the only job I will probably ever get, therefore I may have to stay…" She then looked over at Rod and gave a faint smile. "Besides, I bet you have a life back at home. You don't need to stay with a silly Gremlin like me…"

"Don't say that, Roseanne. I care about you very much. I'm sure I will find some way to come see you again…" Rod thought about the statement he just made, and wondered how much of it was really true. Would he ever see her again after he left for Japan? And she was right; he did have a life back at home, a family, something he still had failed to tell her. He sighed; he knew that now was the time to tell her the truth before he left.

"Roseanne, I do need to tell you something. When you said I probably had a life back at home, its true. I'm a father of a family." Rod let the word pour out of his mouth with regret, and Roseanne was struck with disbelief. She lowered her hood and looked away from him.

"I always seem to find out new things about you everyday, Rod Redline," she said with a ting of hurt in her voice. "I thought you said you were divorced."

"Let me explain, please, its not all that is seems…" But how was he going to get himself out of this one? He shouldn't have waited to tell her this, that he had been legally married all along while being in a relationship with her. He didn't want her to feel like he used her, which was far from the truth. Roseanne didn't know why he was seeking her love and friendship, after what his wife had done to him. He didn't want to relive the memory of the day when Emily broke his heart, but he knew he would have to now.

"I'm not divorced, I fibbed a little on that one. I am legally married and I have two kids. But the car I'm married to…were not together in my eyes anymore. "

"Why not?" she asked, still not looking over at him as he talked.

"I came home after my last mission, and she told me she wanted a divorce. She came out to me that she had been cheating on me for years behind my back, and actually brought one of her men with her for me to meet. I was crushed, Roseanne. I don't think I had ever cried so hard in my life, and I don't cry." Rod took one last deep breath out of his cigarette before dropping it into the ocean waters below, realizing that it didn't relax him one bit. He glanced over at Roseanne, and when he saw her full of pain and betrayal, it hit him hard.

Here was Roseanne, a sweet and innocent Gremlin who only wanted to make a living for herself, and Rod had come into her life and ruined her. He gave her so many mixed signals by giving her love, but having so many secrets about his life that he hid from her, making her question her love towards him. He had also brought her into a mission that wasn't hers, bringing her into danger by betraying her boss and her own kind. These thoughts all came together at once and they were overwhelming. Why had he done so much to a car like her, who didn't deserve anything he had done to her over the past few months? Then on top of that, the emotions of retelling the story of his heart being broken by his wife, and the thought that he left his kids behind began to creep up on him as well and consume him. At that moment as he stared at her, her being full of hurt and dismay, he started to cry.

As soon as he began to cry, Roseanne lifted her hood and turned to him look at him, a look of shock on her face. Rod felt her stare burn into him and he tried to push back his emotions as he usually did but it was no use, the tears kept coming. He then knew he had to apologize to her, and tried to do so in between sobs while lowering his hood in submission.

"I'm so sorry…for, everything. I didn't mean to bring this upon you, if only I kept my emotions in check as normal none of this would have happened…" Rod tried to catch his breath before sobbing and continuing.

"I really do care about you, Roseanne. I have met no other car like you, ever in my life. You are genuine, beautiful…yes you heard me, beautiful, and you are intelligent. I never told you this, but when I first met you in the bar that night I remember how I fell for you. I was so attracted to you and I didn't understand why, to the point that I yelled at myself and demanded why I was feeling these feelings of attraction. But now I understand why I felt the way I did, because I love you Roseanne, and I love everything about you. I wish I could have not been married when I met you, or been a spy, or been a muscle car…but I just couldn't hide how I felt about you. And…I'm sorry…" Rod shook his hood as he continued to sob. He looked down at the ground, feeling the tears run down from his eyes. He wished that this had never happened, that he could have turned back time and just had stuck with the mission as originally planned.

Then he felt something warm touch his side, and when he looked up he saw Roseanne leaning into him. She wearing an expression he had not expected to see from her. She was wearing a smile.

"Takes a lot for a big muscle car like you to cry, doesn't it?" Roseanne asked him softly. Rod nodded his hood, feeling ashamed and slightly embarrassed that he cried in front of her.

"Don't be sorry, Rod. You have been honest to me, and its true the truth hurts but you care enough to tell me. If you didn't care, you wouldn't have told me anything about you. I think in your position it takes a lot to reveal your identity…"

"It's taken me everything. You knowing anything about me could risk me loosing it all, but it's worth it for you…"

"And that's another thing, you care about me, more than any other car in life. You make me happy, you make me feel like I am important and I'm not just some other old and run down Gremlin. You make me feel, like I am someone." She paused and huddled a little closer to him. Rod returned her affection by nuzzling her side gently. His sobs turned into sniffles as his crying began to cease.

"Plus, I never thought in my life this would happen. Who would have thought that I would have come to this job, on the ocean out in the middle of nowhere, and have fallen in love with a muscle car…"

"And who would have ever thought I would come on this mission and fall in love, with a Gremlin…"

The two cars stood huddled together, keeping each other warm while the cold sea air blew around them. As they huddled together Rod couldn't believe that after he told her he was married that she still loved him the same. _Bless this Gremlin's soul for having to deal with an ungrateful car like me_ Rod thought.

"I can't believe it…" Roseanne said, breaking the silence. "This will be our last night together until who knows when…" she trailed off as she looked out into the black void of the ocean.

"I know, I wish it didn't have to be this soon. If I could, I could stay here forever," Rod replied. It was true, life here had been wonderful, despite all the work that had to be done and having to deal with the Professor and the constant fear of being caught as a spy. He had met so many wonderful cars here, and they were the last cars he thought he would ever interact with: Lemons.

"Me too, I never want to go back. For once, I feel accepted." Roseanne paused and gave Rod a slight nuzzle.

"You know, I've been thinking, Rod. I've been thinking about this for a very long time, but I think I have finally reached a decision," she stated. Rod glanced over at her, a little confused by her sudden remark.

"What is that, sweetie?" Rod asked.

"I have something I want to give to you. It's very precious and dear to me, and I've been waiting for years to give this thing to the right car. And that car is you, Rod" Roseanne said, smiling at him softly.

"I'm, kind of confused. What is it?" Rod asked.

"Oh I can't tell you right now, it's a surprise!" she nudged Rod playfully. "But seriously, I can only give it to one car and that car is you. Promise to take care of it for me, ok?"

"Whatever it is, I will do my best to take care of it for you," Rod said, giving her hood a nuzzle.

"I think we should get back to the apartment, now. It's getting a little chilly out here, isn't it?" Roseanne said, changing the subject quickly. Rod did notice that despite them being huddled together, the cold was finding its way through to them. Rod gave a slight shiver.

"That's a good idea, Roseanne. Let's head back…" Rod stood up on all four tires and she followed him.

"Oh, don't forget to get back into costume before we head back."

"Right," Rod said before returning into his Gremlin disguise. When he was all ready, Rod led the way back to their apartment.

Along the way Rod thought about what Roseanne could possibly be giving to him for him to keep safe. Was it a Gremlin family heirloom he was now going to be entrusted with, or a special object of hers that would remind him of her while he was away?

Then suddenly, another thought occurred to him of what it could be. This caused his cheeks to flush red. Luckily Roseanne didn't see, since he was driving ahead of her. _Well, I guess I'll know what it is before tomorrow night_ Rod thought as they drove along the sleepy oil rig, the sea breeze air blowing lightly as they drove under a star filled night. This was their last night together, and Rod could hardly believe that it had finally come.


	19. Goodbye

_**** Hey guys, sorry for the delay! Also, if anyone wants an exclusive rated M chapter please PM me! Enjoy guys!****_

Chapter 19 - Goodbye

The next day was Rod and Roseanne's last time together on the oil rig. Unfortunately throughout the day the two were separated, selecting and managing the Lemons coming along on the voyage to Japan. Rod helped the Lemons organize and move some of the boxes from the box moving area onto each of the three ships, among other things. He tried to see Roseanne when he could but every time he attempted, he was always dragged off to do something else. This was not how Rod wanted his last day on the oil rigs to be, but with the Professor manning his duties he had no choice. He could only hope that he would be able to say goodbye to her before the end of the night.

As night had fallen, everyone was preparing to leave. The last of the cargo was being loaded and the Lemons were staring to collect their belongings for the journey ahead. Rod still needed to pack, but had to deliver one more crate on to one of the ships. When Rod had found the crate, he saw that it was to be taken to the ship exclusively by him, and he had to show it to Professor Z before stowing it away. He could only imagine what it could be.

With the aid of a forklift he brought the crate towards the center of the oil rig, where he was certain the Professor would be found. As he drew nearer he heard Grem and Acer yelling at the Lemons to move more crates. At that moment he heard the Professor, asking the Lemons to move out of his way as he moved along. As Rod approached he saw the Professor come towards him.

"Here it is Professor. You wanted to see this before we loaded?" Rod asked.

"Oh yes. Very carefully….ah, very good" the Professor replied as the crate opened right before him.

As the crate opened, Rod found himself looking at a particularly odd object. It was the last thing he had expected to be found on the oil rigs, and Rod stared at it curiously. It was a World Grand Prix TV camera.

"Oh, a TV camera! What does it actually do?" Rod asked with curiosity. Rod knew that after working with the Professor for a while, nothing could be on the oil rigs that was something as simple as a TV camera.

"This camera is extremely dangerous…" the Professor paused for a moment, as if he was going to continue but stopped himself.

"This is valuable equipment, make sure it is properly secured for the voyage," the Professor finished in a low voice, giving a quick glance at Rod and then the camera.

"Got it," Rod replied as the forklift closed the crate. He then gestured the forklift to follow him as he started to head over towards one of the ships, pondering over what he had just seen.

_A dangerous TV camera_ Rod thought. How could a TV camera possibly be dangerous? Sure, TV cameras might not catch the most charming scenes in the world, but to call a camera itself dangerous? It sounded preposterous.

As he helped the forklift load the crate into a secure location towards the front of the ship, he asked the forklift to open the crate again for him to check on the camera. When the box reopened Rod looked at it again, and to him it looked like a standard TV camera. Rod could only imagine its purpose. Could it relate to Roseanne's research for the combustible fuel she made? Rod wasn't sure, since he had no idea how a TV camera would fit into the picture, especially after all the investigating the two had already done together.

A round of gunshots then suddenly interrupted Rod's thoughts, and he quickly glanced back onto the oil platform. He saw what looked like a car floating in the air, and it seemed to be flying away from a bunch of shouting, angry Lemons.

"He's seen the camera! Kill him!" he heard Professor Z shout. Who? Who saw the camera? He thought he heard a name beforehand but it was interrupted by gunfire.

Rod thought about joining in and figuring out what was going on, but quickly decided that this time he would stay out of everything as much as possible. As he continued to hear shouts and the revving of angry Lemon engines, he simply ignored them by driving around the ship, making sure every box was in its place. He tried humming to himself to block everything out, but it wasn't working. In the back of his mind he knew exactly who they were chasing down this time, Finn McMissile. If this were anything like when Leland paid them a visit, he would surely be meeting his end tonight.

Suddenly Rod heard a large boom, and he looked away from a box of crates. To his horror he saw Lemons flying in every direction from a large explosion, coming from the spiral roadway that lead towards the helicopter pad. Rod could no longer take it, and he drove off the ship and towards the activity as fast as he could. Within moments he found himself joining every other Lemon on the helicopter pad, all surrounding a car he quickly recognized as Finn McMissile.

Finn was glaring back at all the Lemons threateningly, revving his engine to show his defiance to being taken down. Then four Lemons with welding instruments came straight for him. Rod let out an inaudible gasp. No, he couldn't let this happen again, let a fellow colleague of his get destroyed while he stood around and watched.

Rod quickly began to move himself through the pack of Lemons in front of him. He was running out of time, the welders were moving in on him, and he could hear Finn's tires squealing…

Finn threw himself in reverse and drove himself over the edge of the landing pad. Rod stopped dead in his tracks, unable to believe what had just happened. Did Finn just commit suicide? A heavy silence hung over the Lemons as they watched Grem and Acer emerge from the crowd and look down at the water below. The silence continued, and everyone was sure that Finn was dead.

A loud engine rev echoed from underneath the oil rig. Every Lemon perked up at the sound, looking around in confusion.

"Get to the boats!" Grem shouted at Acer as the two dashed away to the boats below, and all the Lemons followed behind them. Rod stayed behind, frozen in place. How did Finn manage to not die when he hit the water?

He shook his hood to snap himself out of his thoughts. He drove off the helicopter pad and back down towards the Job Board, and there he saw the Professor standing by himself.

"Professor?" Rod asked as he approached.

"Ah, Darrel," the Professor acknowledged. He then made a quick motion to follow him. "Its sad, isn't? All these spies come in, thinking they can stop us. And when they realize it's too late and they can't outsmart us, they loose their lives. Pity. They all seem talented and bright individuals. But they would be even more so if they thought twice before crossing the paths of us Lemons." He paused as they neared the edge of the oil platform.

"However, despite Finn's foolish attempt to infiltrate our plans, we have lost great numbers of us tonight. I need you to go off and evaluate whom we have left, so we can make a new list of cars to take on our voyage. Quickly now, we need to depart as soon as possible." The Professor sighed, looking slightly distressed now that they were not on schedule. Rod nodded his hood and set off to go prepare the remaining Lemons for the voyage ahead.

As he was leaving, Rod heard some dreadful news from an incoming radio transmission for the Professor. It was the voice of Grem, and he sounded full of triumph. "He's dead, Professor."

"Wundebar. With Finn McMissile gone, who could stop us now?" the Professor said eerily, and Rod shook his hood in anger. How could've he let this happen again, letting another spy die under his watch? He sighed, realizing there was nothing left he could do. He would have to get the information to Pete all on his own, and he wasn't quite sure how that was going to be done.

The ships were now all loaded with their appropriate cargo and every Lemon that was coming along for the journey. As Rod checked off the last car, he stood and waited for Grem and Acer to board the ship. They were told to identify the Lemons who had died in the explosion, and then push them into their watery graves. Rod lowered his hood glumly as he waited. This could have not been worse of a night. Lemons had died, Finn had died, and he had not seen Roseanne all day. Thinking about it, all he wanted right now was to see her face before he departed. However, as he saw a very grim looking Grem and Acer approach the ship, he knew that his wish would probably not come true.

"Alright, let's get out of here," Grem muttered to Rod as him and Acer passed him by. Rod sighed and started to turn around and follow them when he heard someone shouting out his name.

"Darrel! Darrel!" Rod turned around and there she was, Roseanne. She drove over to the ship as quickly as she could and skidded to a stop.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't around all day, the Professor…" she paused when she saw Grem and Acer glaring back at her. They wanted to start the long voyage ahead of them.

"Don't worry about it, I knew you were busy." Rod paused, took his tire and rubbed it gently across her cheek. "I'm going to miss you, Roseanne." He could feel tears slightly fill his eyes as he admired her beauty, knowing he might not see her again.

"I'll miss you too…" Then at that moment Rod and Roseanne fell into a kiss. They wanted to make their last moment together a memorable and loving one. As they kissed Grem and Acer glared at them, looking quite revolted.

As they pulled out of their kiss, the two cars eyes locked. Rod smiled and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

"I love you, Roseanne."

"I love you too, Darrel."

The two stood looking at each other for a moment, and then Grem coughed impatiently. Rod pulled his eyes away from her and nodded towards Grem, who glared back at him as he boarded the ship. Rod looked back at Roseanne one more time before he loaded, and he quickly saw the happiness fall from her face. She lowered herself closer to the ground with her tires were pulled inward, and her mouth was scrunched up, as to prevent herself from crying. Rod wanted to go back and console her, hold her and tell her everything was going to be all right. But he had to go, he had to complete the rest of his mission and had to do it without her.

Once he boarded the ship, everyone was ready to go. The three ships going on the voyage were slowly lowered into the water, and within no time they were off. As they sailed on, Rod watched the oil rigs get smaller and smaller. He could still see Roseanne, standing on the edge of the platform, watching them go. She too got smaller and smaller, until she finally disappeared out of Rod's view. When she was gone, he sighed and turned around, lowering his hood. He drove over to where he saw Grem and Acer, who were both having a couple of drinks, and decided to join them. As he joined them he quickly took a swig of whiskey. He now realized that nothing in the world, even if he did complete the mission successfully, could ever make him feel happier than Roseanne.


	20. The Plan

Chapter 20 – The Plan

The voyage seemed to drag on. Every night since Rod left Roseanne, he found himself becoming more miserable, more hopeless, and turning to alcohol and his cigarettes whenever he could. His heart was empty and he felt as lonely as ever. Not even the usual banter between him, Grem and Acer could cheer him up.

One morning Rod was driving around on deck, taking in the sea air while trying to enjoy his now daily dose of cigarettes and coffee. He passed other Lemons as he went along, and they looked miserable as well. Everyone could not wait until they made landfall in Japan, since being at sea and seeing no land in sight had been a little foreboding. Rod couldn't wait until he saw land, but he knew he desired to see someone more than that…

Suddenly Rod heard a little buzz; Pete was sending him a radio transmission. Panicked, he looked around to find a quiet and unguarded place so he could speak to Pete. Finally he found it, the bathroom. He quickly locked himself inside and answered his boss's call, talking in a low, quiet voice.

"Hey Pete, what's up?" Rod asked.

"Rod Redline, I need to give you some new information. As you know, the mission is slightly compromised…" Pete began.

"I know, I know."

"Well, I've developed a new plan for you. You are going to meet Finn McMissile in Japan now…"

"Finn? Finn's alive?" Rod asked with shock. He heard Grem clearly state that he had killed the British spy.

"Oh, yes he is! Finn told C.H.R.O.M.E about the incident, and said he was able to deceive the gunners that chased him down. Anyway, the plan now is that you will meet Finn in Japan. You will hand off the photo you took of your leader's engine for him to analyze. Then he will safely be able to hand it off to me."

"Great. Where will I be meeting him?"

"Judging by your course of travel, it looks like you are going to land in Tokyo. And based on the info you have given me so far, it seems these guys might crash the World Grand Prix party in Tokyo, hosted by Allinol."

"Wait, what?" Rod asked, confused. "Why are we crashing a party?"

"Your Lemon coworkers do not seem to be fans of Allinol, and they might be there to spy on its creator, Sir Miles Axlerod. My guess is they will get any information they can about this guy, and do what they can to ruin his reputation."

"Isn't that a really large conclusion to jump to, Pete?"

"Judging by the information you gave me about their leader's dislike for Allinol and the fact that he is running a large oil reserve, I can only assume such," Pete stated.

"Now, I want you meet Finn at the party and relay him the info. Stay in disguise as long as possible, but when he sees you, don't present yourself as a Gremlin. He might think it's a trap and may attack."

"So I need to be out of costume before we meet?" Rod asked, a little troubled. This was a great risk to take if he was going to be surrounded by his enemies.

"Precisely."

"Do you know anything about the facility? Where will be the safest place for me to meet him?"

"Unfortunately, the place is full of security cameras. The only place that will be safe for you is the bathroom."

"The bathroom? What if I get trapped?" Rod was now more worried about this. He could become cornered and the whole mission would become compromised….

"Yes, the bathroom. Be stealthy, don't let them know where you are off to. But listen, I need to go. That's the plan, stick to it, Rod. I'm out."

Pete quickly hung up on Rod. Rod let out a sigh of anguish as he exited the bathroom. He drove over towards the side of the ship and looked down at the sea below.

This plan was highly dangerous. Spies coming together was never a good situation and if not done right, both of their lives could be in jeopardy. Rod would have to make sure no one followed him to meet Finn, and Finn could not allow himself to be seen. Rod was now panicking, and in response quickly lit a cigarette to calm his nerves.

He looked out on the horizon and there he saw it in the distance, Japan. This was it, the final showdown. He was being given only one chance to complete the mission successfully and if he screwed up, all his hard work would be lost. If he screwed up not only would he have lost the mission, but he would have lost the opportunity to see Roseanne again.

As Japan drew closer and closer to him, he felt more nervous. It was now or never. Tonight was the night that was going to determine the rest of his life as he knew it.


	21. The Bathroom

_**** Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay but here is Chapter 21! Enjoy! Chapter 22 is in the way :) ****_

Chapter 21 – The Bathroom

Pete's predictions had been correct. The minute they landed in Tokyo the Professor told him, Grem and Acer that they would be crashing the Allinol party. They, amongst a few selected Lemons, would be coming along with the Professor to see if they could learn anything about Sir Miles Axlerod and his plans for the World Grand Prix. They were to find out as much information on Miles as possible, and what loopholes existed to allow them to undermine the event and ruin Allinol's reputation.

As Rod, Grem, Acer and the Professor arrived at the party, the Professor instructed them to go their separate ways. They would meet again around nine o' clock near the wasabi station to discuss their findings.

Rod did little investigating. Instead he decided to casually chat with as many random cars as he could find. All that was on his mind at that moment was finding Finn McMissile, and determining what time he would go off and meet him. This would be difficult, since he knew there were Lemons scattered throughout the party. He didn't want to come across one while heading off towards the bathroom, where he would not be in costume.

Nine o'clock rolled around. Rod had only had one drink and grabbed some food at the wasabi station. While talking to a small Japanese car he suddenly became aware of the time, and realized he was late. He rushed off to meet his coworkers, and found them waiting for him, looking rather impatient. As he was driving over to them, however, something caught his eye. He saw the outline of a silver and sleek car parked next to a purple car on the floor above him. Rod recognized that silver outline anywhere; it was Finn McMissle. He knew it was time to hand off the information.

"Nothing to report, Professor. Overheard some cars talking about how Miles plans to surpass the oil industry with his revolutionary fuel, but other than that, nothing. Just heard casual talk," Rod stated, trying his best to prevent the Professor from knowing he made no effort to find out anything about Miles.

"Thank you for the report, Darrel. We haven't come across much either," the Professor said and let out a brief sigh. "Well, we can't stop now. Let's split up again. Another report at eleven o' clock should do."

"Got it," Rod replied as he began to drive off. As he was leaving, he noticed something odd. Grem, Acer, and the Professor were staying in place, discussing something amongst each other. He wanted to turn around and have a listen in on their conversation, but he knew he had to keep moving. He had to hand off the information to Finn as soon as possible. The longer he waited the more dangerous getting together could be.

Rod glanced around himself nervously as he began to drive towards the bathroom. He kept checking his side view mirrors to see if there were any Lemons around or if anyone was following him. So far he saw nothing. He drove as quickly as he could until he found a deserted side hallway, where he saw two doors to the bathroom. He couldn't read the signs as to which one was the men's or the women's bathroom, so we waited for a car to come out. When a male car came out of one of the doors, he quickly drove inside.

As he entered the bathroom he looked around, looking calm and casual with a smile on his face. He did not want to appear suspicious to any cars that he could have encountered in the bathroom. To his surprise, however, there was no one in the bathroom; it was completely empty. Rod surveyed his surroundings one more time, making sure the coast was clear. Then he wiped the fake smile off his face, and his expression turned into one of grimace.

Without any further hesitation, he removed his costume. Piece by piece, the metal panels of his Gremlin costume fell away, and Darrel Gremlin became Rod Redline. When he was fully out of costume he quickly looked behind him to see if anyone had seen him, and then he drove towards the bathroom mirror.

"Ok, McMissle, I'm here. Its time for the drop," Rod said to himself as he approached the mirror. He then activated the tracking beacon on his status bar, revealing his location to Finn.

Now that Rod's location was revealed, all he could do now was wait. This was it, the moment he had been waiting for, to finally hand off the information to Finn and end this mission once and for all. He quickly looked behind him to see if Finn was coming through the door. Nothing yet.

As he continued to wait, he found himself looking into the mirror. There he was, Rod Redline, a handsome blue muscle car with eyes that shimmered a deep blue. As he looked at himself, for a brief moment he felt like he was looking at a stranger. He expected to see a yellow ochre Gremlin staring back at him, not the car who stood before him. He had been impersonating a Gremlin for so long he now realized, in part, that he had become a Gremlin.

On no other mission had he felt the disguise he took up actually became a part of his personality. Maybe it was due to the fact that he had lived in a separate world out on the oil rigs, and became integrated into a society that stood alone from the mainstream. Lemons were cars that made their own lives and standards, and being on this mission he learned these standards and followed by them. As he made friends with Grem and Acer, fell in love with Roseanne, and worked with these cars, he saw something within himself that had never existed before and couldn't deny. In costume and out of costume, he had become a Lemon.

Just then he heard someone come in through the bathroom door. When he looked up he expected to see Finn McMissle, but to his astonishment Grem and Acer were approaching from behind him. Both Lemons were wearing expressions of anger and loathing as they approached, and ready to unleash it...

Rod narrowed his eyes, returning them the glare they were throwing at him. They now knew who he really was, they knew that they had been lied to, and he knew they were ready to attack. Rod pulled his concealed gun out of his hubcap, and loaded a bullet into the chamber. As the gun made a click from the gun being loaded, he heard a screech of tires coming from behind him.

In a blur Rod whipped himself around and saw Acer charging right for him. He fired one shot at his friend, and it missed. Acer then came barreling into him, sending Rod spinning across the room. This landed him right near the sink where a few minutes ago he had been contemplating his identity as a Lemon.

Grem came at Rod in a blur, striking the side of his body with his front bumper again and again. Pain seared throughout Rod's body as the blows became harder and harder. He wanted to fight back, but it was hopeless between Grem ramming into his side and him being wedged against the wall.

Grem suddenly pulled back. Rod watched as he drove over to Acer, and they exchanged a few words through whispers. Rod got back onto all four tires, but as he did pain ripped through his chassis. He looked over at them, and knew that if he were going to have any chance against them, he would have to attack first. They were fighting him in the same fashion in which they had fought Leland: fighting with unimaginable strength and showing no mercy.

Rod suddenly heard the squealing of tires, and he reacted. He whipped himself around, drove straight on at an oncoming Grem, and they collided. Pain tore through Rod again but he pressed on, using his powerful engine to push Grem back. It was working, Grem was faltering and maybe he could win this fight…

Acer drove into sight, running right into Rod's side. This blow drew him away from Grem and pushed him right up against a bathroom stall door. He heard more of his metal crunch, and the pain he felt then was the worst pain he had experienced in a long time. Grem and Acer drove away from him as he now lay against the door, trying to regain his strength. They were playing with him, giving him false hope that he could recover and fight them again. However, Rod was starting to see that this might not be a fight he could win.

He clenched his teeth together to channel the pain that burned within him, and he started to pull away from the door and back to the wall where he had been cornered before. Grem and Acer started to draw in on him, Grem smiled wickedly as Acer began to spin his tires, ready to attack. Acer lurched forward…

Suddenly, one of the bathroom doors opened right in front of Acer, and he hit it head on. There was a large clang of metal as a rusty tow truck drove out of the bathroom stall. He seemed frazzled, but Rod couldn't thank this tow truck enough for interrupting their fight.

The tow truck looked frantically over at Grem, and he yelled, "Whatever you do, I would NOT go in there!" He pointed at the bathroom stall door as if some evil lied within.

The door to the bathroom stall began to close on its own and revealed Acer behind it, and he was lying on the floor in a dazed state. As it closed he slowly stood up and tried to adjust his jaw, which looked like it was rendered askew from the door smashing into his face.

"Hey!" the tow truck yelled out excitedly at the sight of Acer, and he quickly looked to Grem as well. To Rod, it seemed the tow truck was finally aware of their existence. "A Gremlin and a Pacer! No offense to your makes and models, but you guys break down harder than my cousin Betsy when she…"

As the tow truck rambled, Rod acted quickly. He realized that he was probably not going to make it out of this fight, and therefore would not be able to hand off the photo to Finn. He felt terrible about the decision he was about to make, but it had to be done in order to avoid compromising the mission. He had a feeling he might not be there when the mission was completed.

He pulled out the photo, which was on a small chip drive, and attached it on a tracking beacon. With a metal rod concealed under his hubcap, he took the photo and slowly placed it on the rod, and then placed the rod underneath the tow truck's undercarriage. He discharged the photo and it quickly attached to the tow truck.

The tow truck jumped in surprise and moved backwards, and he finally realized that Rod had been parked behind him. At first the tow truck looked confused, and Rod guessed that he didn't know he was there. Then the truck's face quickly contorted with worry as he glanced at Rod's damaged body.

"Whoa, you ok?" he asked, quickly surveying Rod's body. Rod looked away from the tow truck and back at Grem and Acer, who were staring at him menacingly. He had to get the tow truck out of the bathroom, he had the photo and he didn't want Grem and Acer to find out.

"I'm fine," Rod muttered, mostly to himself. He continued to gaze at his newfound enemies, who were looking impatient.

"Hey! Tow truck!" Grem yelled suddenly. The tow truck perked up at being acknowledged. "We'd like to get to our private business here, if you don't mind." He sounded frustrated.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Don't let me get in the way of your private business! Oh, and a little advice. When you hear that giggling and see that waterfall, you best press that green button," the tow truck rambled. This only increased Grem and Acer's impatience. As he continued to ramble, Grem and Acer did what they could to stop him short, but nothing seemed to be working. Finally, they told him to get out, and the tow truck agreed.

The tow truck left as swiftly as he came. Now Rod was alone in the bathroom again with Grem and Acer, their menacing gazes not lifting one bit.

"Your gonna pay for what you have done, traitor," Grem said between clenched teeth. He revved his engine, lurched forward, and struck Rod head on.

Rod went spinning across the room again, and this time Grem and Acer showed no mercy. They ganged up on him, started beating him to a pulp. He couldn't move, he was caught underneath all their blows and was completely defenseless. He had no gun, he had no strength; he had nothing.

The room around him was turning into a blur. The pain that was scorching through his body was beginning to numb. The world around him was going dark and he began to slip into unconsciousness.

Before he fell, however, an image crossed into his mind. There she was, his beloved Roseanne. He saw her back on the oil rigs on the day he saw her at box moving duty. He saw her beautiful red body glowing in the sunlight, her deep blue eyes shimmering, and the way she moved captivated him. She gave him a light smile, one of reassurance, one of caring, one of love…

But before he knew it she was gone, and he slipped into darkness.


	22. Smile for the Camera

_***Hey everyone, sorry this chapter is long but a lot happens I guess you could say. Hopefully I can get the next chapter out before I go to college! Enjoy!***_

Chapter 22 – Smile for the Camera

Darkness and distant voices were the only things Rod could perceive. He heard cars casually mumbling, having conversations he could not understand. He wanted to know what was going on, but he couldn't get out of the darkness that imprisoned him.

Slowly, Rod could feel himself coming out of the darkness. At first things were fuzzy, but they became clearer. He began to make out words of the voices he kept hearing, and one word made him jump right back into the light.

"Roseanne…."

Rod slowly opened his eyes. He looked around, taking in his surroundings. He felt weightless, and then realized he was hanging in the air by a large magnet, similar to one you might find in a junkyard. He didn't know where he was, but it looked like an old and abandonded warehouse. He then saw his fellow Lemons standing below him, and amongst them were Grem and Acer.

"Hey, look! Sleepy is awake!" a blue Pacer yelled out. Rod watched as Grem and Acer turned around to look up at him. They were both scowling.

"Well, whadda yah know. Its about time you woke up," Grem said and snorted with disgust.

"Where am I?" Rod asked, looking down at his old friends. Their scowls did not subside.

"None of your business. The Professor will be here momentarily to speak with you, and right now that's all that matters," Grem replied.

"Yeah, and your gonna get it for sticking your bumper where it shouldn't have belonged," Acer scoffed.

"Although I gotta admit, Rod, you tricked us real good," Grem acknowledged in a tone that lacked praise.

"And we don't like being tricked," Acer spat. Rod looked down at all the Lemons again and at that moment something funny popped into his mind, and he laughed. He didn't know why he thought it was funny, because in turn he had become a Lemon. Maybe it was being in the threat of danger and the resentment he was receiving from his friends that made him think this way.

"Hey! What's so funny?" Acer shot back. He didn't find what they were saying to be a joke.

"Oh, you know. I was just wearing a disguise. You guys are stuck looking like that," Rod said in a cocky tone. He knew he had punched a nerve in Grem and Acer at that moment, since their scowls worsened. As a result, Grem pulled a lever that turned the magnet off above him, sending him crashing down onto a metal platform below him.

"You keep your mouth shut," Grem barked as Rod fell to the platform. Pain flamed throughout his body as he hit the metal surface with force. The pain within him burned worse than it had done during their fight in the bathroom, and he clenched his teeth to channel the pain.

A red Gremlin, who Rod at first thought was Roseanne but discovered it wasn't since he had more rust, suddenly appeared at his side. Rod felt a gas pump being clicked into the entrance of his gas tank, and saw that the gas the red Gremlin was giving him was Allinol. Rod was confused, why where they giving him Allinol?

"Allinol? Thanks fellas! I hear this stuff is good for yah," Rod said, trying to hide his confusion with a cocky and confident statement.

"So you think!" Rod heard a familiar voice, and he quickly glanced behind him. The Professor had appeared from out of the darkness of the warehouse, and slowly began to approach him.

"Allinol by itself is good for you," the Professor remarked, and Rod watched as he drove over towards a control panel next to the platform he was parked on. He pressed a button and Rod felt his back tires begin to spin, and the speedometer on his status bar read he was going over a hundred miles per hour while standing in place. He was on a car treadmill.

"But, after microscopic examination I have found that it has one small weakness. When hit with an electromagnetic pulse, it becomes extremely dangerous," the Professor stated, and his voice cracked a little when he said 'extremely dangerous'. Rod winced.

"Smile for the camera," Grem said slyly, catching Rod's attention. Rod saw he was parked right in front of the television camera that he had secured on the ship, back at the oil rigs. Rod didn't understand, where did a TV camera fit into all of this?

"Is that all you want? I got a whole act!" Rod said as the camera turned on in front of him. He looked over at the Professor, who only curiously raised his eyebrows at him.

"You were very interested in this camera on the oil platform. Now, you will witness what it really does," the Professor said darkly as he drove away. He parked next to Grem, who seemed to be getting antsy.

"Whatever you say, Professor," Rod replied. _Finally, it's about time I will be getting some answers, _Rod thought. Although he knew getting these answers was going to cost him a fair price.

"You talked up a lot of cars last night. Which one is your associate?" Acer asked, dragging a TV into view that had a picture of him in his Gremlin disguise next to a pink SUV. They must have known he passed on vital information such as the photo, and they wanted to know whom he had given the information to.

"Your mother. Oh no, I'm sorry it was your sister. You know I can't tell them apart these days," Rod replied in a cocky tone. It was no longer time to play nice in Rod's eyes, and he knew that he would never give away any information about the mission. Even if it killed him.

"Can I start in now, Professor Z?" Grem asked eagerly, obviously offended by Rod's comment.

"Hm, fifty percent power," the Professor replied, and Rod watched Grem push a lever next to the camera up from a green to a yellow bar. At first Rod felt as if nothing happened and showed this by smiling into the camera, just as Grem had instructed.

Then it hit him. There was a boiling sensation that started in his gas tank, and it began to travel throughout his body. It was a feeling he had never felt before, but it was one of the most painful things he had ever experienced. He felt his strength being ripped out of him as he collapsed from the pain. He clenched his teeth and tried to channel the pain again, but he began to feel short of breath and needed to concentrate on breathing. There was nothing he could do to stop the pain or lessen it; the perfect type of torture.

"This camera is actually an electromagnetic pulse emitter," the Professor said in a lazy drawl, and at that moment Rod perked up. With the Professor's statement, Rod saw all of the investigating that him and Roseanne had executed begin to come together. The research Roseanne was conducting, the TV camera being more than a TV camera…it was all starting to all fit. Allinol was the fuel Roseanne had created, and it was going to be used in the World Grand Prix to damage Sir Miles Axlerod's reputation. That camera was going to be used to put any car that drank Allinol in danger, making the fuel look unsafe and cars would stop using it.

"So this is what this is…a plan to foil Sir Miles Axelrod's reputation, isn't it? Creating a fuel for him that in turn will destroy him?" Rod was able to muster out, despite the pain that was crippling him.

"Oh, its much more than that, Rod Redline. Its to make the oil company founded by us Lemons the most powerful in the world by making alternative fuel look unsafe. The cars of the world will have no choice but to come to us for their fuel. No one will laugh at us call us names. They will appreciate us and look up to us despite our mechanical failures for the power we have…" the Professor tried to rave on, but Rod cut him short.

"Oh really? And what if someone is using your kind to do their dirty work, for their own personal gain and not yours?" Rod shouted back, using as much strength as he could.

"How dare you question the intentions of our leader. You don't know as much as you think you know," the Professor spat, narrowing his eyes.

"Well, if you want my opinion, I certainly make a better Lemon than him…" Rod was going to continue, but he felt his breath catch short again, and his strength beginning to dwindle. He was loosing his ability to speak and the Professor took notice.

"Ah, the Allinol is now heating to a boil, dramatically expanding, causing the engine block to crank and compress, forcing oil into the combustion chamber," the Professor stated. Rod realized that this must be why he was in such pain and was loosing his ability to speak; his engine was expanding, ready to burst underneath his hood.

"What do I care? I can replace an engine block," Rod sneered, trying to hold his bravado.

"You may be able to, but after full impact of the pulse…Unfortunatley, there will be nothing to replace," the Professor stated. He looked up at Rod and their eyes locked for a moment, and it was the first time they had since the interrogation began. The car who Rod looked up to as his boss had now become his greatest enemy. Any trust they had between them was now broken beyond repair.

Rod could hear Acer continue to interrogate him but he took no notice; Grem turned up the power on the camera, and the pain of his expanding engine and gas tank crippled him again.

"What a horrible way for you to go out isn't it, Rod Redline? Best spy in the world, isn't that what they call you? Too bad you have to have to go out this way, and too bad you are leaving something very precious behind…"

The interrogation was interrupted when two Lemons pushed a small red Gremlin into the room. She was bounded in ropes and chains and her mouth was gagged. As she came into the light, Rod recognized it was Roseanne. Tears were spilling out of her eyes as she looked up at him in his damaged state, and even underneath her gag she was trying to scream.

"Two of my best workers, traitors," the Professor said chillingly as he looked at Roseanne. "Unfortunately for your little lover, Rod, she will be following you right in your tire tracks. For the treachery she has committed in aiding you, she will need to be interrogated and disposed of…"

"You will not lay one tire on her!" Rod shouted, having to gather up his remaining strength again. "Let her go free, take me instead!"

"I cannot. Once one has betrayed us, they must be disposed of, and her being a female Gremlin will not make her an exception. A traitor is a traitor, and her love for you made her turn on us. She is no longer needed."

"Please, let her go, please!" Rod begged, despite the pain crippling him. "She doesn't deserve this, oh please don't take my Roseanne, please…"

"I cannot, and I will not go back on my word." The Professor turned to the two Lemons who brought her into the room. "Place her in the backroom. We will fetch her once this one is destroyed." The two Lemons nodded and dragged her away. Rod watched, absolutely helpless.

"I love you, Roseanne!" he shouted, and he felt a tear trickle down his side. They weren't going to kill her. They couldn't possibly kill her, not a sweet little Gremlin like her…

"Enough!" the Professor shouted, and for a moment there was silence. Rod stood there helpless, furious, but one question still remained in his mind.

"How did you figure out it was me who was the spy, Professor?" Rod asked. The Professor smiled, and let out a short laugh.

"It was simple, really. At first I believed you were just like any other Lemon that had come to work for me, but were a rather unusual fellow. When I first saw your records during your initiation, I couldn't help but laugh. It said you had killed another Gremlin in the Yellowline family over money matters. I found it rather odd, but disregarded it due to the legitimacy of the rest of information that was provided to me about you. However, once we found out that a spy was amongst us I had to do some more investigating, not just of you but every Lemon who had come to work for us." The Professor paused and let out a short laugh again.

"I looked more into your records, and thought I would investigate the murder you committed. Turns out, according to the head of the Yellowline family, you killed no one at all. But it wasn't only that which caught my attention; the Yellowline head had never even heard of your name before. Although the Yellowlines are a quieter group when it comes to the Gremlin family subdivisions, they all know each other for the most part, and that for me was a red flag. Also the fact that you were interested in the camera on the oil platform confirmed my assumptions that you were a fraud were correct."

"And what about Roseanne?" Rod asked.

"Simple. Once I found out your true identity, I could only assume that she was working with you due to how close you two were….and Grem finding out that many of the research papers Roseanne had written about Allinol were missing from her lab."

The room was silent again, the Professor had said all that was needed. So it was only a slip in background information that had gotten him caught. _How the little things can always get you big time in the end_ Rod thought.

The Professor, who seemed eager to finish the interrogation, turned to Acer. "Now, you may continue as you wish."

Acer smiled. The TV he had next to him flashed to an image Rod immediately recognized. It was an image of him next to the tow truck from the bathroom, the tow truck that had the vital information that could ruin all the Lemon's plans.

"How about him? Does he have it?" Acer asked, glaring up at him defiantly. For a moment, Rod froze. He glared at the image, seeing the truck that was still keeping his mission afloat. There was nothing Rod could do, nothing he could say. There was the picture of the car they were looking for, and he had no strength left to defend himself. He was going to die, no matter how he was going to react to the image. Therefore, he stayed silent.

The Professor's eyes lit up at Rod's reaction to the photo, and from there he knew. "That's him, he's the one," the Professor remarked and to him, Rod's silence had said it all.

"NO! You're not going to get away with this!" Rod shouted, but the Professor had disappeared from view.

This was it; these were the final moments Rod was spending of his life. He was in pain, he was being harshly interrogated, and the knowledge that his beloved Roseanne was going to die right after him was now being brought with him to the grave. The Professor was right, this was a terrible way to go out. He had gotten caught, and he was paying the price. All he knew now was that his time had come, and he would be meeting his maker alone.

The Professor returned, and stood right at Grem's side. He looked up at Rod, his face emotionless, and Rod knew that his life lay in the Professor's tires.

"The project is still on schedule," the Professor began, addressing his fellow Lemons. "After our business is done here with Rod and Roseanne, you will find the second agent…and kill him."

The Professor began to reach for the control to the camera that was at Grem's side. For a moment the world stood still.

In that brief moment, Rod saw his life flash before his eyes. He saw himself dealing drugs as a kid for his drug addicted parents. He saw himself entering the army, and then winning a medal of high honor for his work. He saw himself travel briefly into every mission he had been, coming away successful every time. He saw himself with his kids, playing in the backyard on a cool summer night. He saw himself as a Lemon, having a good time at the bar with Grem and Acer. He then saw himself with Roseanne, in her bedroom, making out with her and embracing her beauty…

His life had been wonderful and plentiful, but he didn't want to leave it. He wasn't ready to leave this world; he wasn't ready to die. There was so much more he had to live for.

The Professor put his tire on the dial and turned it onto the highest setting, the full impact of the pulse.


	23. The Long Haul

_****Hey everyone, I know its been a long time, but I was busy with college and I have graduated :) Therefore I was able to have some free time to get back to work on this story! Sorry for the wait but I hope you enjoy!****_

Chapter 23 – The Long Haul

Roseanne lay in the backroom of the warehouse, all chained to the floor and gagged. She was alone, and felt helpless beneath the chains that bound her. In the next room Rod was being destroyed and she knew there was nothing she could do to save him.

She looked up at the ceiling, and she knew she was next. All her hard work would be going down the drain. Somehow they found out she had been working with Rod, and she had been pulled off the oil rigs to come here and be interrogated, and die at their hands as well.

After her many attempts to escape, she tried to find a way out of the chains that bound her once again, and to her surprise she finally found a weak spot. It was as if someone had left a minor weak spot in the chains on purpose, wanting her to go free instead of meeting the fate that lay before her. Knowing she had little time, she removed the chains around her as fast as she could. This allowed her to remove the gag that kept her quiet, and she took in a deep breath of much needed air. For a moment she sat in silence, free and now realizing she could escape and avoid death. But she couldn't.

Rod, the only love in her life, was in the other room being tortured. She knew in her heart that she probably couldn't save him, but she knew she couldn't run away knowing she let him perish. It was going to take everything she had, but she knew she had to do her best to save him, even if it meant risking her own life. At this point, she didn't have much to loose.

She silently drove around, looking for a way to enter into the main room of the warehouse without getting caught. The two Lemons that had dragged her in to see Rod were guarding the main doors, so going through there was not an option.

She began to search for another opening, and she found one a few feet from the main door. It was a small service door, and she knew if she was quiet enough she could sneak in without anyone noticing. As she began to reach for the door, she suddenly realized she had no way of defending herself; they took all her weapons.

She searched herself for a weapon they might have missed, and to her surprise she found one. It was an old tazer that the Professor had given her when she first got on the oil rigs to ward off aggressive Lemons. Someone not only wanted her to get free, but to kick the ass of anyone who tried to get in her way…

Roseanne shook off the thought and knew she had to stop pondering and get into the warehouse. She snuck through the door as quietly as she could, and now had to think of a plan to save Rod.

When she reentered the warehouse, she had to reevaluate her surroundings. There were many Lemons surrounding the TV camera, and she would have to get through them all before reaching the Professor. She knew what she had to do: taze each one in progression and work her way up. She wished she had more time to plan, but time was not on her side. With time being limited and adrenaline running high, similar to that of one attempting to conduct a murder, thinking right was the last thing on her mind.

She snuck up to the first Lemon, and tazed him from behind. He jolted a bit, and then slipped to the ground barely making a sound. She had the power up as high as she could so the Lemons would be in so much pain they would not even be able to express it, and instead slip into unconscious. She went behind another Lemon, tazed him and continued to work her way to the front. The Professor had no idea she was coming, and Rod was too blinded by pain to see her; it was the perfect approach.

Finally she reached Acer, who was next to the TV. The Professor was speaking to Rod and he began to reach his tire for the highest setting, the highest impact of the pulse. Roseanne knew this could be his final moments of life if she did not act.

"The project is still on schedule. After our business is done here with Rod and Roseanne, you will find the second agent…and kill him." The Professor reached for the dial on the camera…

Roseanne jumped out from behind Acer, attacking him on the side. The two Lemons spun across to the other side of the room, crashing into things and sending anything that came within their path flying. Grem looked on in shock as the Professor removed his tire away from the dial.

"Kill her! I want her terminated at once!" the Professor screamed, trying to grasp onto the situation at hand. He turned around and to his surprise his entire crew lay unconscious. He knew Roseanne had been a particularly gifted and skilled Lemon, but not in a stealthy and sly way. The Professor watched as Grem drove away from the camera to aid his friend, who to his surprise was lying unconscious on the ground beside Roseanne.

"What do you think you are doing, Roseanne?!" Grem asked, absolutely furious.

"I'm saving the love of my life, and I won't let you or anyone else get in the way," Roseanne growled as she jumped at Grem. He tried to run, but the fury that burned inside her overwhelmed his ability to run out of fear. She knocked him down and tazed him, sending him into unconsciousness.

The Professor stood by the camera for a moment, bewildered. He quickly snapped out of it by shaking his front end, and put his tire back on the dial to turn the camera back up to the highest impact of the pulse.

"You won't be able to save him, Roseanne. Kiss your lover goodbye!" the Professor shouted as he turned up the dial to the red mark and let out a cruel, heartless laugh. Roseanne's eyes widened in horror, but she little time left to think. She dove in towards the Professor, hoping to shut off the camera as quickly as possible.

As Rod was beginning to tremble on the treadmill from the camera being on the highest power, he began to scream. It echoed throughout the walls of the warehouse and it split through Roseanne like a knife. He was in pain; so much pain and she could feel it rip through her own chassis. She was running out of time, soon the pulse would kill him….

Roseanne accelerated furiously and slid into the Professor, knocking him off to the side while she skidded to a stop not far from the dial. The Professor went tumbling across the room, helplessly screaming and cursing as he went. Roseanne quickly regained her balance and sprinted over to the dial, where she was able to bring it back down onto the green mark. The camera powered down, and for a moment she stepped back in bewilderment of everything she had just done. She was out of breath, her whole body shaking. Rod was still screaming, and it deeply penetrated into every part of her. She had saved him for now, but with him in the state he was in, she wasn't sure how much longer he would be alive.

As she stood there for a moment panting, the Professor warily stood up on all four tires after being knocked onto the ground. His surprised face turned into a snarl as he gazed over in her direction.

"After all I have done for you, after giving you a job and a place to live, a place where you would be accepted, this is what you do to me?" Professor Z yelled over Rod's desperate screams as he approached her.

"Does that even matter anymore, Professor? Especially since now that you want to kill me? What dignifies I should respect you anymore?" Roseanne growled back. She couldn't afford wasting any time fighting with the Professor; Rod needed medical attention and fast.

"I gave you a chance Roseanne, to see you for your talents and not your looks and make, yet you turned against me! Do you realize now that you have betrayed your own kind? You will be an outcast, shunned from a society that has already been deemed inferior in the eyes of many. You will not find a job, you will not have a life, you will have nothing! And you are nothing Roseanne, nothing but something less than a Lemon."

Roseanne stood still for a moment. Rod's screams still filled the room, but for a moment they faded out to her. Yes, she would now become an outcast to all Lemons for her actions. However, there was one thing she had none of them did.

"Love. I have love. I have someone in my life that loves and cares about me, more than anyone ever did in my whole life. That is something not you, or any other Lemon, will ever understand. It is worth more to me than earning a job or being accepted by cars that have already shunned me. Love is everything, and I will die for it."

Suddenly Roseanne lunged at the Professor again, landing on top of him and wrestling him to the ground. She pulled out her tazer, hoping to only get him in one shot.

The shock went right through the Professor. She felt him jolt, and then she finally felt him turn limp underneath her. She jumped off of him and gave him one last glance. It was one of sympathy, since she knew that he would never understand what it was like to love or be able to trust anyone in his life. With that she quickly drove over towards Rod, who's screams had now ceased, but his entire body was trembling and his eyes were wide open; he was going into shock.

"Hold on, Rod don't give in! Please don't give in!" Roseanne yelled as she started unhooking his front tires off the treadmill. She had to get him to the hospital, and there wouldn't be time to call an ambulance since she didn't have access to a phone. She would have to tow him there herself.

She quickly went into the backroom of the warehouse to grab the chains that bound her only a few minutes ago. She wrapped them around Rod's body, and then wrapped them around herself to connect both of them together. Now she would be able to tow him to the nearest hospital, or tow him as far as her small Gremlin engine could carry her.

She pushed on the gas hoping to pull Rod swiftly along with her, but her tires spun with little effort. She stopped and tried again, and her tires spun again without fail. She began to worry, many she really didn't have the power to tow him away, and he would die here. _No, I can't give in_ she thought, and she tried to accelerate again. This time she started to accelerate gradually, and with some extra strength she began to move and Rod started to move with her. It didn't make it any easier that he was complete dead weight, and him being in drive was the only way she was able to move him. Her Gremlin engine strained in protest, but she kept pushing and was finally towing him at a steady pace, and made her way to the exit of the warehouse.

Out of the corner of her side view mirror, she saw something that made her heart race. Grem and Acer were starting to awaken from unconsciousness, and they started to get back up on all four tires. Although weary, the two were starting to head towards her and she tried to move faster out of the warehouse, but her Gremlin engine continued to strain. When she finally reached the exit, she saw that a steel door blocked her way. Luck being on her side, she was able to find the operating panel that controlled the door and pressed a button, and the door slowly began to rise. Now that she had stopped again, she had to rebuild speed once the door had opened. Just as before, she gradually accelerated and was out of the door with Rod in tow. As she regained her previous speed, she glanced in her side view mirror and saw that Grem and Acer weren't that far behind.

She frantically drove down the streets of Tokyo, looking for any sign of a hospital, but none passed her by. Her engine continued to strain as she pulled Rod along, and it would occasionally sputter when she attempted to pick up speed. Grem and Acer were still hot on her tail, however they moved sluggishly due to them attempting to recover from being unconscious. Cars stared on at them in awe at the sight of the small Gremlin pulling a charred muscle car down the streets, with two other Lemons in hot pursuit behind them. However the onlookers made no actions, no call to the police or not even question what they had seen, and they let the strange scene pass them by.

Roseanne's adrenaline was rushing, her heart pounding furiously out of exhaustion and nerves. As she pulled Rod down the busy city streets, pushing cars out of her way to move through traffic, she had no idea what condition Rod was in at this point. In the warehouse he was barely conscious and had gone into shock, therefore she did not know if he was able to maintain consciousness or he had slipped into darkness, or worse he was dead. This thought passed through her head from time to time but she had no time to think. She had to continue to ward off Grem and Acer even though her engine was making it clear she should have cut the chase a while ago.

She ran through intersection after intersection, pushing cars out of her way, hearing cars shout words at her she could not understand. Grem and Acer were catching up now, their strength returning while Roseanne's was waning. She was running out of steam, her entire body was aching from her pushing her engine and the chains putting strain on her body. She felt herself starting to slow. _No!_ she thought, pushing herself to go faster, but her engine began to sputter. The sputtering did not stop once it started, and she felt her engine begin to crank over in her hood. It was painful, and she clenched her teeth as she felt the pain swell and then explode inside her, and smoke began to rise out of the creases in her hood.

She felt herself loose speed quickly, and she tried to get her engine to go again despite the pain, but it did not give. The smoke was becoming more prominent and everything started to slow down. She looked back into her side view mirror, and saw that Grem and Acer were quickly catching up to her. She had failed, they were going to take her back to the warehouse and kill her, and leave Rod to die…

As all her senses began to dull and she was almost at a crawl, off in the distance she heard something that was almost music to her ears, the dull sound of sirens. Maybe someone had finally called them in, and someone was on the way. Maybe there was a chance that she had not failed.

She continued to press on her damaged engine, but it continued to show resistance. She looked into her side view mirror again, and noticed that both Acer and Grem took notice to the sounds. Acer began to frantically gesture Grem with his tire, pointing down towards a side road where they escape and not be noticed by the police. At first Grem didn't respond, and stared after Rod and Roseanne with a cold, almost emotionless gaze. Acer yelled at him again, and he awoke from his trance. He nodded in agreement with Acer, and they disappeared down another city street, out of sight. Roseanne watched them go, and relief flooded over her. However, she noticed that Grem was still giving her that gaze as he turned away, and she could only imagine what he was thinking.

Her engine was now at its breaking point. It could not be pushed any further, and she could no longer tow the deadweight muscle car behind her. She collapsed, with all four tires splayed on the ground. She tired to stand up but her strength was not returning to her. Smoke was profusely billowing out from her engine, and the world around her became blurry.

Cop cars quickly pulled around the bend of a city block, and began to surround her. An ambulance and fire truck followed in tow, seeming unaware of the situation at hand. She felt cops fly behind her to Rod in a blur, and she heard shouting and yelling that her clouded mind could not comprehend. She felt the ambulance blur pass her, and the sound of metal being broken. There was more yelling, and the chains that bound her went limp.

A cop car came up to her, speaking in Japanese and then in English. She couldn't pick up his words; everything was becoming cloudy and dark. The smoke that billowed around her made the cop's appearance hard to see, and she could feel herself slipping away.

Everything went black as the cops began to close in on her.


	24. The Hospital

_****Finally, I was able to get a new chapter up! I apologize for the delay, life has been hectic lately. Two more chapters are in the works, enjoy!****_

Chapter 24 – The Hospital

The darkness was subsiding. Roseanne slowly opened her eyes and looked around, her vision still a little fuzzy. When her vision became clear she saw she was in a small hospital room. Everything was white and sterile, and the blinds on the windows were drawn to protect her for her return to consciousness. Roseanne noticed that her hood was bandaged up well and every part of her body was sore, to the point where even moving her tires was straining.

A nurse, who was a small, white Honda sedan drove into the room. When she saw Roseanne awake a delightful smile appeared across her bumper.

"Welcome back, Miss Gremlin," the nurse said as she drove over towards Roseanne. She washed her tires and began to inspect Roseanne from bumper to bumper, checking her vital signs and her overall well-being.

"You are lucky someone called you in. If your engine wasn't treated quickly you would have had extensive engine damage," the nurse said with a calm in her voice. Roseanne didn't take much to the comment or give it a second thought, but in that moment her mind was suddenly flooded with the events that occurred last night and she jolted.

"Where's Rod?" Roseanne frantically asked the nurse, repeating it several times. Instead of answering the question, the nurse told her to calm down and that she needed to rest and not to worry.

"Where is he? The car that I was towing last night?" The nurse realized that Roseanne wasn't going to rest without knowing Rod's condition. The expression she had when she had when she entered the room had now clearly fallen away to a gloomy one.

"Mr. Redline is currently in the intensive care burn unit. We were surprised he made it through the night," the nurse paused, and Roseanne looked into her eyes, pleading for more information.

"He has extreme internal burns, something we have never seen before. The exhaust pipes all the way up to his engine block are charred, and the doctors are trying to repair him while keeping him alive. He also needs extensive body reconstruction, he is beat up pretty badly."

Roseanne couldn't believe it that he was still alive, but for how much longer? He made it through the night, but if the burns were as bad as the nurse was saying they were, even if he survived he might never be the same again. Plus since he was so damaged, would they be able to repair his body back to normal? Although at that point, she quickly realized all that didn't matter right now, all that mattered was that he was alive, and she had to see him.

"Ma'am, I need to see him, I risked everything to save his life. May I be able to visit him?" Roseanne asked in a desperate tone.

"No, not while he is intensive care. He must be stabilized first and it might be a while until then. Plus, you need to rest more," the nurse scolded lightly. Roseanne sighed; she should have expected that answer.

As the nurse resumed to checking her over and filling out a health record to keep an update on her progress, Roseanne's eyes drifted over towards the windows, which were still shrouded by the blinds. She wanted to look outside to see if the sun was shining, and that everything was going to be all right.

"I'll return in a minute, Miss Gremlin," the nurse said, breaking Roseanne's trance. Before she left, the nurse got a ping on her pager, and she gave it a quick check as she reached for the door.

"You have a visitor, they will be up with you shortly" the nurse addressed as she headed out the door, gently closing it behind her. Her heart started pounding, who was her visitor? Was it Grem, Acer or worse, the Professor? She waited anxiously, hoping that it wasn't them who had come and found her.

When the door opened, Roseanne almost jumped out of her frame from anxiety. The nurse drove in, and a car she had never seen before in her life drove in behind her. It was an old, silver Cadillac Elderado whose face was very grim. The nurse let him in and as quickly as she had come she left, leaving the two alone.

At first there was silence. Roseanne had no idea who this car was, or why he wanted to see her. She waited on him to make the first move.

"Roseanne Gremlin?" the car asked and she nodded her hood slightly. "My name is Pete Rosland, and I'm director of the CIA."

Roseanne looked at him with shock. _So this is the_ _car Rod works under _she thought. Right now he was not as jovial and happy as Rod described him to be. He seemed stern and serious, but underneath that she could see he was full of fear, and sooner or later that fear was going to break through.

Pete looked around as if to see if anyone was listening, and then looked back at her again. "Please, you need to tell me everything you can," he whispered to her in a desperate and shaky voice, finally breaking down. "Torque was one of my best agents, how could this have happened?"

Roseanne looked back at him, concerned. How could she really reply to that, when she herself really didn't know what happened?

"I don't know, sir. Things came crashing down pretty quickly, they found us out," she replied, but she could tell he wanted answers.

"And what role did you play? Surely you are the enemy, why would you try and save his life if he was infiltrating your plans?"

"I helped Rod try and infiltrate the operation towards the end of his mission. I am a weapons specialist and chemist who worked with alongside Professor Z; he took me under his wing a few years ago. However, Rod showed me that there was a much darker element at play in our operation and that someone was trying to use my kind to attain power while dragging us under. That is why I decided to relay Rod all the information I could and aid him in his mission. I am also his lover."

Pete froze for a moment after the words fell out of Roseanne's mouth. "How could he have a lover? He has lovely Emily, and Rick and Andy…how could he fall, excuse me, a Gremlin?" Roseanne was a little hurt by his words, but she knew he didn't really understand.

"He didn't tell you? Emily cheated on him multiple times while he was away on missions and she wants a divorce. When he told me he had a wife a while ago I was upset, but now I see where he is coming from. That was the only reason why he went on this mission. He had to get away from her or he would have declined it. He met me while we were working together and we fell in love. And I know I'm a Gremlin, but does it really matter who and what you are when you love someone?" Roseanne stated.

Pete stood there dumfounded. He shook his hood and tried to reorganize his thoughts.

"I'm sorry Miss Gremlin, that was not professional of me to go there. I'm just in shock, I didn't know, he told me all was well before he left," he stated, a little guilt in his voice.

"I understand and from what Rod has told me, you guys are very close," Roseanne said.

"We are close. Now, let's get back to business. So you said you worked for Professor Z, what duties did you perform?" Pete asked.

"I would be going against my kind if I relay the exact information as to what we have been doing on the oil rigs to you. I cannot disclose such. I have betrayed my kind enough by giving Rod help; I cannot do anymore than what I have already done. I know they will find me and kill me if I do or say anymore to bring harm to our operation," Roseanne admitted. Now that she was off the oil rigs, she didn't want any new information or leaks to be coming from her. She knew that she was now going to be rejected by a society that was already rejected from the rest of the world. The damage was done, and she did not want to add more gasoline to the fire.

Pete did not look impressed by her response, but he gently nodded his hood. "Very well, Miss Gremlin. If Rod pulls through, I will try and get information from him." Roseanne lowered her hood, she was sorry but there was nothing more she could do.

There was a knocking on the door, and the nurse allowed herself in. She had come in to check on Roseanne again, but seeing Pete still there she began to leave. Just then Roseanne had an idea. Pete was director of the CIA, maybe he could convince the hospital to allow both of them to visit Rod.

"Miss, miss," Roseanne called, and the nurse turned around. "Has Rod stabilized yet?"

"In the process of doing so, why?" the nurse replied.

Roseanne acknowledged Pete to come closer to her, and she whispered her plan to him. She knew he was curious to see his most trusted spy as well, and was she happy when he told her that he would talk to the nurse and go along with it.

"Ma'am, I am director of the CIA. My most trusted spy has been struck down. Once he stabilizes, may I ask permission for me and Miss Gremlin to go and check on his condition?" Pete proposed. The nurse stood still by the door, shocked to find out who her visitor was and the identity of her critically burned patient. She gently nodded Pete to come with her, and the two of them left Roseanne alone in the hospital room. She hoped that her plan had worked.

Almost four hours passed by before she saw the nurse and Pete again. When they drove back into the room, Pete seemed a little less edgy than he was before. He smiled at Roseanne and glanced back over to the nurse.

"Is she ok to drive?" he asked. The nurse checked her records on Roseanne and nodded yes. "Come with us, Miss Gremlin. Rod has stabilized enough where we can see him."

Roseanne perked up immediately and put herself in drive, slowly following them out of the room. Her body still ached, but it was better than when she first woke up.

The Japanese hospital was one of the largest she had ever seen, and was filled with doctors and nurses constantly going in and out of rooms to check on patients. Unlike the hospital rooms, the hospital itself was very modern. The floors were metallic and glittered with multicolored paint flecks etched into them, which made the hallways sparkle. The walls and ceilings were a more plain metallic color, but gave the hospital a unique shine that was quite unlike the hospitals she had seen in America. As they drove down the hallway they passed into the hospital's atrium, which had a large skylight ceiling where you could see the lights of Tokyo. She could also hear the roar of a large waterfall below her. In the atrium, she couldn't believe she was still in a hospital.

They passed through the atrium, and at the far end of the hallway was the burn care unit. The nurse showed them the way and when they entered, there were a small number of doors that ran down both sides of the hallway. She saw the doors to the intensive care burn unit and thought that was where they were headed, but they went towards one of the doors instead. The nurse opened the door and went inside first to make sure Rod was still ok to see. She then exited and acknowledged they could enter, but whispered something to Pete that made his slight jovial attitude fall.

The two cars entered the room and the door closed behind them. Roseanne watched as Pete's eyes widened in horror and let out a gasp, and she did the same when she saw him. Rod Redline stood before them, unconscious with a respirator in his mouth, which was helping him breathe. There were many other machines hooked up to him constantly checking his vital signs, which showed that for the moment he had stabilized. They had yet to begin on the process of reconstructing his body, which was still damaged from his grueling fight with Grem and Acer. His underside and hood were completely wrapped in gauze and medical tape, but where she could see exposed metal she saw scorch marks that stained him black. This must have resulted from him being exposed to the highest amount of electromagnetic pulse for not even a few seconds. His condition was devastating. Roseanne tried not to cry in front of Pete, and bit her lip and held her emotions back.

"What in Chrysler's name did they do to him? My greatest agent, he's almost completely charred and beaten to a pulp….who the hell are we up against here?" Pete asked frantically. Roseanne didn't answer, since she didn't really know herself.

As Pete pulled out his phone to call someone, Roseanne drove up to Rod's side and looked him over. She wanted to snuggle up next to him and feel his warmth, but there were too many machines and cables still hooked up to him. She sighed. Thank god that the Lemons took her off the oil rigs, or Rod would really have been as good as gone if she had not been there.

As she stood there next to Rod, she wondered what the Lemons would have done with him if they had successfully murdered him. Would they have let him to rot in the abandoned warehouse? Would they have attached weights to his tires and thrown him into the harbor? Or would have they sent his charred body back to the CIA as a cruel joke? She wasn't sure, and she was surprised at herself that these thoughts even crossed her mind at that moment. _But maybe I shouldn't be so surprised. _Roseanne thought. _It could have happened if I didn't save him in time. Or I might have never known what they had done to him, since I might have been killed right after he was and met the same fate._

Her body shivered. The thought was too horrible. Roseanne did not want to know the pain Rod must have went through, but she knew it was horrendous. She shook her hood to get the thoughts out of her head. Just then, she heard Pete address her name.

"Roseanne, I warned the British about these guys, and what they are capable of. I hope Finn McMissle doesn't have to cross the same path as Rod did," Pete addressed.

"Do you know if the information Rod passed along has been secured and safe?" Roseanne asked.

"Not sure, but I hope so. Apparently C.H.R.O.M.E hasn't heard much from Finn at all, which is slightly alarming to them. I can only hope everything is going along all right, and that the pain Rod endured wasn't all for nothing," Pete sighed. "I need to go, I need to go meet up with another C.H.R.O.M.E agent while they are still in Tokyo. Are you going to stay with Rod a little bit longer?"

"Yes, until they kick me out at least," Roseanne replied. Pete nodded and then headed out the door, leaving Roseanne alone with Rod.

For a while, the only noises made in the room were the sounds of the machines that kept Rod's life on the line. Roseanne only wanted him to wake up and breathe on his own, and that he would recover. She was scared, how long would he be this way? What if he never did fully recover?

"Rod, I don't know if you can hear me, but I hope you can somewhere. Please come back, I am here and Pete is here. We are here for you and you need to get better, you need to wake up. You can pull through this, I know you can. Just hang on, hang onto your life and don't let go. There are too many things you still need to live for…"Roseanne trailed off and started to get emotional again. She bit her lip and held back the tears; she told herself while she was waiting for Rod to wake up, she would not cry. She was going to be strong and pull through this, just as he was.

There was a knock on the door, and a doctor and nurse entered the room. Roseanne was asked to leave, and she dreaded leaving his side. She knew he needed her, although she wasn't quite sure how to explain it. She felt hurt as she drove out of the room, and took a glance at Rod in her side view mirror just before she closed the door. It was going to be a long haul, but she was going to stay at the hospital and visit Rod everyday until he would wake up. At this point all she could do was have hope and faith that he would pull through.


	25. Darrel, Gremlin?

Chapter 25 – Darrel…Gremlin?

It had been six days since Rod and Roseanne escaped the awful fate that the Lemons had presented them with. Roseanne was surprised that it had not been that long ago, but to her it seemed like it happened months ago. So much had been happening at the hospital she had little time to think about that night, and instead kept up with the present.

Pete had agreed to stay in Tokyo until Rod woke up, and every other day he came to check up on him and Roseanne. The first few days he had little to report on the progress of the mission. On day three however, all of the questions she had about the entire operation had been confirmed.

Roseanne remembered when Pete drove into the hospital room. She was at Rod's side, talking to him. She paused, and Pete lowered his hood. When he broke the news, her entire world seemed to fall apart.

"The mission has been completed by Finn McMissle and an unknown accomplice. The car behind your entire operation happened to be Miles Axelrod, owner of Allinol. He set up the World Grand Prix to destroy his own reputation with Allinol, which was a combustible fuel he created in order for cars to switch back over to conventional oil. So you know those oil rigs you and your Lemon kind worked on? Those were under his ownership. He wanted alternative fuel to be undesired by all cars so conventional oil popularity would skyrocket, therefore allowing his oil reserves to earn the ultimate profit…" Pete paused, noticing Roseanne's expression full of confusion.

"I don't understand…why would he create something to just have it destroyed? That is an odd tactic to use," Roseanne answered sternly.

"Very odd indeed, but it was working for a while. If the mission had failed, all would have gone to plan for Mr. Axelrod. I also have bad news, more so for your Lemon kind. He only hired and paid Lemons to work for him so no one would question the operation. He knew they wouldn't talk about it as long as they got paid and were given an opportunity. After he had gained power, he told us he was going to terminate the employment of all the Lemons that worked under him. I'm sorry, Miss Gremlin," Pete stated with dismay.

After Pete broke the news, an awful realization dawned on her at that moment, which brought back the all too familiar feeling of betrayal. So she was the creator of Allinol. It was her combustible fuel that was used to harm the racecars in the World Grand Prix, and it was her fuel that had almost destroyed Rod's life.

She also realized that although her kind had worked under a powerful Lemon in theory, Rod had been right all along. Her kind was only being used to keep the entire operation under wraps. The Lemons themselves would not benefit or be any better off as they were promised, only Axelrod would have gained power. Their leader had lied to all of them.

The realization hurt her, but she thanked Pete for the update. It was all over, the mission was completed, and the Lemons that were on the oil rigs now would have to be sent home. There was no more work, no more chances, no more opportunities. Roseanne and every other Lemon would be doing what they did before the operation began, go back to being a Lemon. No jobs, no hope, and no escape from the constant mocking that society threw at them. Roseanne rumbled her engine in disgust. _Some life I will be returning to when I get back to America _she thought.

The morning of day six at the hospital, the first thing Roseanne did was pay Rod a visit. Rod was still being carefully watched by the doctors at the hospital, where they continued to repair his burns and start his body reconstruction while he was still unconscious. Every time Roseanne went to visit him, which had become more frequent in the passing days, his appearance seemed to look better and better. The large dents in his sides were gone, and the scratches and scorch marks that adorned his body when he first arrived had been removed. He was still bandaged all underneath his body and on his hood, but his overall appearance was better. The only thing that was not fixed was the crookedness of his mouth, since he still needed the respirator in his mouth to keep him breathing.

Every time Roseanne visited Rod she always talked to him, even though she knew that he might not be able to hear. She always told him about her day, said that Pete was here, and they were all waiting for him to wake up.

As Roseanne came to visit Rod, it still surprised her that none of his family from Detroit had come to visit. Even though she knew they were drug dealers, she didn't know why they didn't make some effort to come, especially if Pete would provide them with airfare and a place to stay. _He's been away from that life for so long, maybe they don't actually care anymore, or they are so removed that maybe they don't even know what happened. _The thought depressed her. She knew that she wasn't very well connected to her parents anymore, but if news got to them that her life was hanging by a thread, she knew they would come for her in a heartbeat.

She heard a knock on the door and replied with "Come in." A nurse stood by the door and told her Rod had another visitor. She allowed the car in, and Roseanne curiously raised her eyebrows at the visitor.

The visitor was a big and hefty muscle car that was dark blue with a thin black racing stripe going each side of his body. However, there were a good number of rust patches that adorned him, especially near his undercarriage. He looked more like an older Camaro, but Roseanne could tell there were hints of Challenger and Ford in his body design. He had vibrant sapphire eyes similar to Rod's, but they were slightly bloodshot. He had one tooth missing, and overall, he looked like an older strung out version of Rod himself.

"Who are you?" Roseanne asked, although she already knew the answer to her own question. The muscle car gave a lazy smile and a quick laugh.

"Oh come on, isn't it obvious? I'm Rod Redline's older brother, can't you see it in the eyes…well his are way better looking than mine so maybe not. Anyway, I'm Darrel Redline, all the way from Detroit," Darrel stated, putting out his tire to shake. He had a lazy strung out voice that was a little deeper than Rod's. She took his tire and they shook.

"Your name is Darrel? That was the name Rod used when he was undercover on the oil rigs. He was Darrel Gremlin," Roseanne said. _So this was the car Rod based his fake name off of, _Roseanne thought.

"Ha ha, Darrel Gremlin huh? Its funny he still remembers me, it was so long ago since the last time I saw him. You see, my brother was always the clever one in our family. Always knew what to do, always had a plan." Darrel paused and seemed to finally take notice of the state of his brother, and continued in a depressed tone. "But from the looks of it, he didn't have a plan this time."

"He had a plan, but things went wrong. He was found out way too soon before he had a chance to think of what to do next. Even the best fall down sometimes," Roseanne said gloomily, and for a brief second she was sent into a flashback of that night. The screams, she still could not get Rod's screams of pain out of her head.

Darrel and Roseanne stood in silence for a while, and finally Darrel spoke. "Well, I'm the only one from the Redline family who will be coming to visit him. Our parents finally got found out and were landed in jail last month. My sister moved away to an unknown location, but I'm pretty sure she is still strung out on drugs somewhere. Me? Well I got the news and knew this is where I had to come." He paused and for a moment he seemed lost in thought. He shook his hood slightly and resumed.

"They almost found me out in downtown Detroit during a deal about a month ago, but I was able to get away. Let me tell you miss; it's not easy being a Redline. I'm glad Rod got out of it and made a name for himself. Greatest American spy in the world isn't he? I knew he had it in him somewhere, and he did it. I'm very proud of my brother, and I feel bad I haven't been around to tell him that. Now I am here, and I'm not sure if he will wake up and hear me say it to him."

There was silence again. Roseanne knew very little about Rod's family, and telling by the condition of Rod's brother their life was a rough one. Even though Darrel's eyes were lazy and strung out, Roseanne could tell at that moment that he was in a lot of pain, since he had never been there for Rod when he should have been.

"And who are you?" Darrel asked. Roseanne forgot to introduce herself, since she was so intrigued with meeting Darrel from the beginning.

Roseanne told her story, how her and Rod met and how they worked together, as well the danger they faced going against the Lemons. Darrel nodded and listened, very un-judging and attentive. Even when she admitted that Rod was her lover, his reaction was very unlike Pete's. He understood and seemed to accept the fact.

"Hey, if Rod wants to be with a Gremlin, I'm not gonna hold that against him. I have done worse things in my life and have not found anyone I could ever love. I'm happy for him," was Darrel's response. Roseanne was relived; for once someone did not seem confused that a muscle car was dating a Lemon.

They talked a little while longer, almost up until visiting hours were over. The doctors and nurses came in and told them they needed to work on Rod again, and the two left the room. They stayed in the hospital, got dinner and continued to talk. They told stories about their lives, and Roseanne got more insight into Rod's dark past before he became a spy.

It was finally evening when Darrel had to leave and go to his hotel. "I will be back tomorrow. I want to be here when Rod wakes up. I am probably the last car he will expect to be visiting him," Darrel said.

"Yeah, but I'm sure he will be happy to see you again," Roseanne said with a smile.

"Yeah…hey, don't you have a place to stay?" Darrel asked Roseanne. She shook her hood.

"No, I've been living at the hospital. Pete got special orders for me to do so. I check on Rod whenever I can. I want to be there when he wakes up as well."

"I appreciate that. I don't think anyone has ever been that dedicated to Rod his whole life. Well, I will see you tomorrow, today has been a long day," Darrel stated gloomily. Roseanne knew it had been an emotional day for him, but he hid that fact very well.

"I hear you, see you tomorrow, Darrel," Roseanne said and waved goodbye. He nodded his hood and she watched him take off down the street. Even though his appearance didn't look that put together, his engine was still as loud, powerful and youthful as it could have been.

As she drove back inside into the elegant hospital atrium, she looked up at the sky. She could see all the colorful lights of Tokyo shining down on her and she let out a sigh. When Rod woke up there was so much he had to look forward to. If only he could be awake right now and see everyone that was there for him.


	26. The Light

Chapter 26 – The Light

Over a week had passed since they arrived at the hospital, and Rod had yet to awake. Roseanne was getting worried, since Rod seemed to plane off and wasn't getting any better than he was six days ago. Pete was also starting to worry, especially since it was getting harder to do all his work in Tokyo versus being back in the States. He didn't want to leave, but if it came down to it he had to go back to America. He had no choice but to leave Rod behind.

Darrel came to visit everyday as he had promised, but he too couldn't hold back his fear his brother might not come back. He would get antsy when he would go to the hospital, and was always disappointed with the news of Rod not making progress. Everyone seemed to be loosing hope…maybe Rod would not wake up, and the trauma to his body had been worse than anyone had thought.

Roseanne and Darrel were getting ready to leave for the night, and were spending their last few minutes with Rod. They kept talking to him in hopes he would hear them, but they still got nothing.

"What are we gonna do if he doesn't wake up?" Darrel asked, more concerned than ever.

"I'm not sure, but he has to, he just has to…" Roseanne trailed off. But what if he didn't wake up? What if all the surgery and work done on him was all for nothing, and he was going to die anyway?

"We need to get going, the visiting hours have been long over by now," Darrel hinted, and Roseanne nodded her hood. She gave Rod a peck on the fender, a goodbye and one last glance before her and Darrel closed the door behind them

He felt his eyelids slowly open, and he was only surrounded by darkness. He felt weightless and free, an unexpected sensation to him after all the pain he was in.

He looked around in the darkness, trying to get his bearings, but he couldn't find them. Where were the ground and the sky? Why did he so feel so weightless?

"Where am I?" Rod asked, but he heard no one else except himself. Then started to think…was he dead? Is this what death was like, blackness and loneliness? _I can't be dead, I can't just be _Rod thought. He didn't feel dead, but he knew that neither him nor anyone else actually knew what death felt like.

Suddenly, for the first time he heard voices, faint voices. He wasn't really sure what they were saying, but he could differentiate their tones. One was a deeper male voice, and the other a female one. He listened hard, and realized the male's voice seemed unfamiliar, but the female's voice on the other hand….

"Roseanne?" Rod pondered for a moment. Was she still alive? Did the Lemons not hunt her down while she had tried to save him?

"Roseanne!" Rod shouted back at her through the darkness. He waited for a response, but he didn't really get one. He still heard voices, but they didn't respond.

"Maybe I need to get closer to them, maybe I'm too far away and they can't hear," Rod said to himself. He revved his engine, which to him sounded as healthy and youthful as ever. He smiled and he took off, driving around in the darkness still feeling the weightless sensation, and it made him feel like he was flying.

"Roseanne! Roseanne!" Rod kept calling as he drove, hoping she would hear. The voices didn't respond to him, but they were getting closer. He kept pressing on, pushing his engine to the limit, calling frantically.

_Where the hell am I? This can't be a real place _Rod thought as he continued to drive. He didn't know how he could exist and be driving in a dark void, it made no sense to him. Never before had he felt such a sensation.

The voices were getting louder now, and soon he could recognize the female car was Roseanne. He called out her name again, but still got nothing. He started to get frustrated. _Why can't she hear me? Why can I hear her but she can't hear me? But what if I am actually dead, and I'm just hearing her voice out of my own memory of her _Rod thought. Although, he couldn't understand why an unrecognizable male voice was part of his memory as well.

He kept driving, the voices even louder now and he was beginning to get hopeful. Then, suddenly, they stopped. Rod screeched his tires to a halt, and stood idling in the darkness.

"Hello? Hello? Where did you guys go?" he yelled. Nothing, he heard nothing. He let out a frustrated sigh.

"I'm gonna loose my mind here, nothing makes sense!" Rod shouted to no one, and shook his hood furiously. He didn't know what to do now. There were no voices for him to follow.

"What if I just keep driving until I hear them again? Maybe they will come back and they just drifted away, or maybe I'm going the wrong way," Rod said to himself. He revved his engine again and took off, and decided he was going to keep going, until the voices became crystal clear, or at least until he saw…

"Light, is that light?" Rod asked himself when he saw something bright shimmering off in the distance. It was light, it was hope from the darkness, and he drove straight for it. He revved his engine some more, picking up speed, feeling the light become stronger and stronger in front of him. He could feel its warmth, its security out of his dark surroundings. He continued to call Roseanne's name, even though he was getting no response. The light kept getting closer and closer, until it was blinding.

Then Rod drove straight through into the light. The darkness was gone.


	27. Second Chances

Chapter 27 – Second Chances

Rod thought that after going through the light he would be back in the light permanently, but instead he was in darkness again. However, this was a different type of darkness, where he didn't feel like he was in an empty void. It was something familiar to him.

Before he had felt weightless and free, but now he felt grounded and heavy. There was also a painful numbness he could now feel, which made him feel immobile. As he returned to this familiar state, he suddenly twitched uncontrollably, sending a shooting pain down his underside. He winced, but he couldn't scream out in pain.

He knew he had to get out of the darkness, but he wasn't sure how. He felt like he was back in his physical body, but he wasn't sure where everything was, such as where his tires or eyes were on his body. It took him a good few hours, but from there he remembered where everything was and he knew what he needed to do to get out of the darkness.

He started to lift his eyelids. They were as heavy as lead, making opening his eyes difficult. As his eyes started to open, he noticed his vision was fuzzy, barely making out his surroundings. _Where am I? _Rod thought to himself. _Did they take me back to America, or did the Lemons recapture me, and this time I will die? _These thoughts kept swirling in Rod's head, and would continue until everything in his vision would come into focus.

Finally, Rod's eyes came into focus. He looked around, his eyelids still heavy over his eyes. He saw he was in a hospital room, and the lights were turned down low around him. He saw a clock on the wall that read five thirty, but he didn't know if it was daytime or nighttime. He saw he was hooked up to many different machines, and he could feel the respirator in his mouth.

At that moment he felt very alone. If he had more energy, he knew he would be panicking as well. He had no idea where he was or how he had gotten there. He didn't remember much from the night when the Lemons interrogated him. After the Professor turned the camera up to the highest setting, all he could remember was feeling a scorching, horrendous pain that went from his tail pipes to his engine block. It was the worst pain he ever experienced in his life. He also remembered Roseanne turning off the camera and coming over to him, saying to him that he shouldn't give in. After he went into shock, he couldn't remember anything else, since the darkness and pain consumed him.

Somehow he was brought to a hospital, and they were repairing the extensive damage on his body. He was relieved that he was not dead after all, but he was worried since he didn't know Roseanne's whereabouts. He didn't know if she was waiting for him to wake up or she had been recaptured by the Lemons, and she had met the cruel fate that had passed him by.

Then Rod remembered the mission. Did it successfully get carried out, or did the information not even reach Finn in the first place? All his thinking began to wear him out and he wanted to sleep again, but he did not want to return to the darkness. He forced himself to stay awake.

Suddenly, he heard the door to his hospital room open. He watched a small white Honda drive into the room and turn on the lights, which blinded Rod's sensitive eyes. He assumed this was a nurse, and when she looked over at him she instantly perked up. She pulled out her pager as she drove over towards him.

"Mr. Redline, can you hear me?" the nurse asked him. Rod lazily nodded his hood and grunted in response, since that was all he could make for words. The nurse was trying her best to hide her excitement, and she quickly drove over to the machines next to him and checked his vitals.

"You seem to be going well now, Mr. Redline. Do you remember when you woke up?" she asked. Rod grunted in response.

"Alright, well the doctor will be here shortly…" she paused as the door opened behind her and the doctor drove in. He started to thoroughly check Rod over and when he was through with his initial assessment, the doctor turned towards the nurse.

"You can take him off the respirator now, I'm going to re-dress his burns while you are doing so. After that I am going to notify the Director of the CIA of his awakening," the doctor stated as he went to work.

_Pete is here? _Rod thought as the nurse removed the respirator from his mouth. It made him feel a little better that news had gotten to his boss about his condition, and he didn't feel so alone.

An hour had passed since the doctor starting dressing his wounds, and Rod was getting anxious. He needed to talk to Pete, and find out everything that happened. Time seemed to pass ever so slowly. Finally, the doctor finished and left the room. Another hour passed. Rod couldn't keep his eyes off the clock, counting down until the very second Pete drove through the door.

Finally, Rod heard the door open. The doctor drove in, and following behind him was Pete. If he could, Rod would have driven right up to his boss and shook his tire. Unfortunately, moving around was the last thing he wanted to do at that moment.

When Pete saw Rod's sapphire eyes looking back at him for the first time in over a week, the Cadillac's eyes widened and a huge smile appeared across his bumper. He looked riddled with excitement.

"Torque, me bucko! Thank Chrysler you're awake, I never thought I would see those blue eyes again!" Pete yelled, slapping his tire across the ground. Rod couldn't help but smile; Pete's reaction couldn't have been better.

"I was so worried, I thought you were never going to wake up! I could never loose my best agent! I mean I still just can't comprehend all of this! You were out for over a week, what in Chrysler's name did they do to you?"

Rod tried to answer Pete's question, but the words were still not coming easy. He only mustered out what he could.

"I….I, don't…know, Pete. Things…went, wrong," Rod said lazily. He never thought in his life that talking would ever become difficult for him.

"Well, maybe that is a question I need to save for you when you fully recover," Pete mentioned, noticing Rod wasn't up to explaining himself yet.

"Well, now that you are awake I want to let you know that the mission was successfully completed! You handed off the information to the right car. He worked well with Finn and they figured out the car behind the whole operation! Sneaky fellow he was."

"Who?" Rod asked.

"You won't believe this, it was Miles Axelrod! Created Allinol to destroy it, crazy isn't it?" Pete said, his jovial attitude not subsiding.

Rod raised an eyebrow…how could it Axelrod? He wasn't positive that Axelrod was an actual Lemon, since he remembered him being converted to an electric car. This started a line of questions that popped into his head. He wanted to ask more, but he noticed Pete's attention was directed at something else.

Pete was looking over at the doctor, staring him down with a sharp gaze. "Can the other guests come in and visit Rod now?"

"Well, Rod Redline is still…."the doctor began, but Pete continued to stare, knowing that the doctor was going to try and say no.

The doctor looked back at Pete, uncertain. He checked over Rod's vitals and burn dressings again, and with a stern gaze he returned to Pete. "Fine, we can let the other two visitors in," he grumbled.

"And can I accompany these visitors myself? They are very important to Rod, and I think he needs some personal time with these visitors," Pete stated. The doctor seemed to be loosing his patience; clearly knowing Rod wasn't one hundred percent ready to be bombarded with visitors since his awakening.

"Fine, we will leave, I know that is what you are asking," the doctor mumbled to Pete, shooting him a glare as he drove out of the room with the nurse in tow. Rod perked up. Who were these very important visitors?

"Heh, being Director of the CIA defiantly has its perks, doesn't it, Rod?" Pete snickered. "Come on in, guys!"

The door opened, and Rod saw a red and well polished Gremlin drive into the room. His heart began to flutter, and then a huge wave of relief hit him.

"Rod!" Roseanne shouted as she quickly drove over to his side. The two cars embraced each other and Roseanne gave him a quick kiss on his bumper. Rod realized she had begun to tear up.

"I can't believe you are awake, I was so worried you would never come back. We have all been waiting for you," Roseanne said softly.

"How…did I get…here?" Rod asked. He still had so many questions that needed to be answered.

"I towed you here myself, with Grem and Acer hot on my tail. Someone called us in to the cops, and they were able to track us down. We are still here in Tokyo, they saw it best to not move you back to America…" Roseanne paused. "My engine blew while I was towing you, but it got repaired and I healed up just fine. Although, I haven't been feeling well for the past few days and I don't know why. I think it might just be a minor gas tank bug from eating the food here."

Roseanne never ceased to amaze Rod. He saw the love she had for him was strong and she would give up everything for that love. Very few cars he knew would risk their life and engine for their significant other, which made Roseanne very special to him. He seemed to fall in love with her more and more with each passing day.

"I'm just so happy you are ok. We were literally here everyday as often as we could be, talking to you and hoping you would hear us," Roseanne said. Rod perked up, so he was hearing Roseanne talk to him.

"I, I did hear you, and someone else. I…tried…to talk, but I didn't, get a…response," Rod stated, improving on getting words out, but still having difficulty. It warmed his heart that Roseanne had been by his side the whole time. However, who was behind the unrecognizable male voice he had heard?

"I heard, someone else…I couldn't, recognize. It was a male…voice. Was it Pete?" Rod asked. Although, he knew it couldn't have been Pete. He knew Pete's voice very well.

"Oh! Pete, where is he?" Roseanne spun around towards Pete, who looked just as confused as she was.

"I don't know, he was with you, wasn't he?" Pete asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, can you go find him?" Roseanne asked. Pete nodded his hood and drove out of the room. Rod was confused, who could this other visitor possibly be?

A few minutes later, Pete came back into the room. "I found him. He was just a bit overwhelmed to see Rod, but now he is ready." Pete drove into the room with Darrel in tow. When Rod saw his visitor, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped to the floor.

"Darrel…Redline? Is that really…you?" Rod was in shock. He did not remember the last time he saw his brother, but it was many, many years ago.

"Yes, it really is me. I'm here for you brother," Darrel said with some emotion in his voice. Seeing his brother alive and awake was one of the greatest things he had ever seen in his life.

The two muscle cars stared at each other for a moment, and then Darrel drove up to his brother and embraced him. Rod was still in shock and embraced his brother, but for him it was more awkward than he wanted it to be.

"I heard what happened, and I had to come see you. I'm sorry, so sorry, Rod. I haven't been here for you all these years when I should have been. The drug business is getting rough; they are cracking down on us. They caught our parents…" Darrel said, his voice cracking every now and then from the emotions welling up inside him.

"They…finally got caught?" Rod asked. This was more shocking news to him. Had the Redline family drug business finally collapsed?

"Yes, we are done, we are through. I almost got caught myself, so I had to drop everything. Brother, I need to tell you this; I have needed to tell you this for so long. I should have done it years ago."

Rod was having trouble taking everything in. Between knowing the completion of the mission and the return of his older brother back into his life, this was not what he expected to wake up to after he drove into the light.

"I'm proud of you, so proud of you. You didn't become one of us. You rose above the life that was given to us, and made everything better for yourself. I could not be more proud of you than I am now…" Darrel's voice was still cracking, and he was doing his best to bury his emotions. Rod couldn't believe what Darrel was saying to him, but he knew it was true. Darrel was not one to show his emotions; not showing many emotions was a Redline trait. However, Darrel had been the best at holding his ground, and to see him get emotional was something Rod thought he would never see. What he had said had really come from the bottom of his heart.

"I'm glad…you are here, Darrel. I couldn't have asked for a better way….to wake up from, all of this to find you, Pete and Roseanne here for…me," Rod said, embracing his brother again, this time with more understanding and with a sense of emotion.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment. All the cars who he really cared about, and those who cared about him, where with him right now. He had survived a horrible bout of torture, almost costing him his life. The ones he loved had stood beside him through it all, and risked their lives and time to be there for him. He had never felt so appreciated and loved in his entire life. He was alive, and he was given another chance to spend the rest of his time with those who cared for him. It was the greatest feeling he had ever felt, and he couldn't have chosen a better way to come out of the darkness and back into the light.


	28. Apologies

Chapter 28 – Apologies

With the passing days since Rod had woken up, he had gotten progressively better. The doctor was still hard at work on his burn wounds, and Rod knew that soon he was going to be released from the hospital.

Pete had gone back to America to continue running business at the CIA. Before he left, he gave Rod every detail of how the mission was carried out, and also made a promise. Rod would not be going on any more missions until Rod decided he was ready to go back. Rod wasn't sure how long that would be, but he was looking forward to his upcoming and much needed break.

Roseanne and Darrel were staying with Rod until he fully recovered, and were going back with him to the United States. They continued to visit him everyday and talk with him, which greatly improved his speech. He could now talk without pausing every sentence.

Each day was the same routine. The doctor would come in first thing, dress his wounds, and then he would spend the day with Roseanne and Darrel. However, on his third week at the hospital, one day did not follow routine.

The doctor came into Rod's room, his face very grim. He was scanning through some papers before he looked up at Rod.

"I have some unfortunate news, Mr. Redline," the doctor stated. Rod raised an eyebrow.

"What might that be?" Rod asked.

"As I have been taking care of your wounds, I have noticed I can not stop the random bouts of inflammation along your exhaust system. Although I have repaired what I could, your exhaust system has a lot of internal damage that cannot really be repaired."

"What does that mean for me?" Rod asked. He was concerned but he did not show it.

"Unfortunately, you will get random flare ups of inflammation, which will cause your exhaust system to experience a lot of pain in a short burst of time."

"And how do I control that, or know when the flare ups are coming?"

"You don't know when they are coming, that is the issue," the doctor said, lowering his hood. "I'm sorry Mr. Redline, I have done all I could. The best you can do is take an anti-inflammatory, but since the pain is so short it won't really do much."

Rod lowered his hood in dismay. He had not felt any pain since the doctor had been treating his wounds. However, he did remember when he was waking up he had felt a pain shoot down his underside. It felt awful, and it frustrated him that he could not control it. He knew he should be thankful he wasn't dead and this was the only issue he had, but dealing with random bursts of pain for the rest of his life was not going to be easy.

"By next week we should be able to release you. I will do the best I can in continuing to repair you," the doctor said gloomily. He went to work dressing his wounds, and didn't speak to Rod for the rest of the time with him, even as he drove out the door.

An hour later Roseanne and Darrel came in to visit, and from there Rod broke the news. He could tell they were upset with the pain he would have to deal with the rest of his life, but they were still being supportive.

"It will be hard, but at least you are still here with us. I could not have asked for more," Roseanne said, giving a peck on his bumper. Rod smiled, and her presence comforted him.

"Well, at least we will all be going back to America soon. Who knows what will be waiting for us back home," Darrel said, trying to stay positive.

"Divorce court for me," Rod said and snorted.

"No job for me," Roseanne grumbled.

"No job for me, but hey come on, at least we will be going home," Darrel said, noticing that maybe that wasn't the right thing to say.

"Well, anything is better than being in this hospital, I guess," Rod said, trying to not make his brother feel uncomfortable. "I just remembered that's what is waiting for me back home." Rod still didn't think he was ready to face Emily in divorce court, and divide all the things they had built up together, including their children.

They continued to talk, until they heard a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Roseanne shouted.

Everyone assumed it would be the nurse coming in to check on Rod. However, it was not the nurse. Two small cars drove into the room wearing Japanese cloths over their bodies, with an eye and mouth hole cut out on each.

"Um, were you expecting a visitor, Rod?" Darrel whispered.

"No…not that I know of," Rod whispered back. The hospital staff always notified him if he had a visitor, but they had not done so for these cars.

The cars closed the door behind them, and Rod's body stiffened. He did not feel comfortable.

"Who are you?" he asked in a loud and demanding voice.

"Ssssshhh…don't talk so loud, we aren't supposed to be here," one of the cloaked cars whispered.

"Yeah, we are gonna be in more trouble if they find us," the other cloaked car said with a ting of panic in his voice.

"But who are you? Visitors need to go through…" Roseanne began, but she was stopped short.

"Yeah, yeah we know…" the first cloaked car drifted off, and then the two cars looked at each other and nodded. They removed their cloaks, and when their identities were revealed, it sent Roseanne and Rod on the attack.

"Grem?! Acer?! What the hell do you think you are doing here?!" Roseanne shouted in anger.

"Get the hell out of here!" Rod barked behind her, and he would have revved his engine threateningly if it still weren't undergoing repairs.

"I'm going to call security!" Roseanne threatened.

"No! No, please don't, please! I have some things I need to tell you!" Grem replied in a pleading tone.

"And we are on the run, the cops are already after us!" Acer shouted, looking around nervously.

"Give me a good reason why I shouldn't, for what you tired to do to Rod and I," Roseanne sneered.

"Because, I need to admit something…" Grem admitted; he was now cowering. For a second, Roseanne backed up and looked at the two Lemons. Their bodies were beaten to a pulp. Their metal was crunched in on both of their sides and they were adorned with large dents. Both Grem and Acer had a black eye, and both cars had blood and oil stains all over their bodies.

"What the hell happened to you two?" Roseanne asked. Now that she was looking at it, due to their conditions maybe these two weren't really a threat.

"We were in London, we got thrown into a bar by a spy. We knocked a whole bar down, and the bar crowd beat us up. Beer went everywhere…" Acer said, shuddering at the memory.

"We are really damaged, and neither of us have the money to get fixed. Especially now that we are no longer employed," Grem said, shaking his hood. "I'm sure you have heard."

"I did, and Axelrod was going to terminate our employment all along," Roseanne said with disgust.

"Yeah, when we found out our leader was Axelrod, we were in shock. The car we were trying to defile was controlling us; no wonder no one knew his true identity. I mean, when we heard the news, Grem was so mad that he barged into a liquor store and smashed down an entire wine section," Acer admitted.

"I hate wine," Grem scoffed.

"Well… we are on the run from that as well. We were able to pay off a private jet to charter us back to Japan. We had to find you two."

"Why? What more do you want from us?" Rod asked, finally piping up. Just looking at his two ex friends made him angry. He was not going to easily forget them beating him up in a Japanese bathroom, and almost allowing him to get blown up by a camera.

"Like I said, I have something to admit," Grem sighed. "This will be news to you too, Acer." Grem paused, as if he was going to regret what he was about to say. "I was the one who called you guys in to the cops, and I was the one who put a weak spot in the chains that bound you, Roseanne."

"Wait, you did what?!" Acer yelled at Grem. "You were the one who let them get away in the first place? We got the worst beating of our lives from the Professor! Why would you set us up for that?"

"And why would you want to help us? Judging by how mad you were at me when you beat me up in the bathroom, I'm pretty sure you wanted me dead," Rod mumbled.

"Look, look! I gotta explain myself, ok?" Grem sighed and then continued. "You need to understand, Rod, I didn't really want you to die. I knew that once the Professor figured out who you were and how long you had been working for us, you were going to die. There wasn't much I could do to help you out. However, the reason I beat you up in the bathroom was because I was so angry, that one of the best friends I ever made lied about who he was."

"Yeah, you tricked us, and we don't like being tricked," Acer chimed in.

"Yeah. So I will admit, I took my anger out on you pretty hard. As for the interrogation, I was assigned to work the camera, not by my choice. I honestly did want to give you some payback for what you had done to us, but not death."

Grem paused, and then addressed Roseanne.

"When I heard they were bringing you to Japan to be interrogated and killed, I knew I had to do something. I know we aren't dating, but I need to admit this to you. You are one of the most beautiful and intelligent female Gremlins I have ever come to know. I could not live with myself if you had died at my tires. When they told me to get chains to bind you in the warehouse, I made a weak spot in one of the links to help you get free. I wanted you to escape, but I didn't know you would try and take Rod with you."

"Ok…well, why did you call us in but continue to chase us down? I surely thought you were coming after me," Roseanne said, still uncertain about the truth behind Grem's actions.

"Geez, I'm getting there! I called you in just before Acer woke up, and I had to chase you guys down so no one would suspect me of helping you guys out. I called you in because I knew that you guys wouldn't really be a threat to us if Rod were injured. When I saw him during the chase he was defiantly unconscious and in critical condition. I knew by calling they would get him to the hospital faster than if you drove him there yourself."

"I can't believe you, Grem! I honestly can't believe you," Acer said angrily, shaking his hood.

"But why? Why would you want to help us like that, especially after we stabbed you in the back?" Rod asked. He still didn't understand why Grem would go through all the trouble to help someone who had been lying to him.

"Because…you and Roseanne were some of the greatest friends I had ever made. Well, besides you Acer," Grem said after his friend shot him a look.

"I had the best time of my life out on those oil rigs, smoking, drinking and just having other cars who cared about me to always be around. All my life I never had anyone who really cared about me, and for the first time I found that in you two. I really did value you guys as friends. That is what I have come back here to ask you two, is that still true?"

Grem's question hung in the air, and Rod and Roseanne simply looking at each other with confusion. Grem and Acer had come back to Japan to question their friendship?

They had a hard time taking everything in. Despite Grem showing that he wanted their demise before, he had secretly helped them escape their fates because of his friendship towards them.

Rod thought for a moment before speaking. As much as he despised their actions against him, he knew that what Grem and Acer had done was because they believed a car that promised them opportunities to become successful. They knew they had to keep their operation alive and stop anyone in their way, or they would loose out on these opportunities the world had always denied them. However, upon finding out their entire operation was a hoax, they realized the spies had been in the right to investigate their operation, and try to bring it to a stop.

He felt sorry for the Lemons. All their lives they had always tried to find someone to trust, and for a period of time they had found that in their leaders. Once again, they were shown they could never really trust anyone when the entire plan backfired. This was probably another reason why Grem and Acer had attacked him so ferociously. They didn't want to be taken advantage of and lied to anymore, and Rod being a spy and their best friend had proved he had been doing just that.

However, as he had seen with Roseanne, Grem and Acer were more than just pawns for his mission. They had become some of his best friends, and they wanted to know if he felt the same way about them as they did about him.

"Grem. Acer. You were the first two Lemons I really met out on those oil rigs. Little did I know how much of a friendship we would develop between us. Yes, my mission did require getting as much information as I could from you, which did include becoming your "friends". Although, it turned into much more than that for me, because you two became some of the best friends I ever had," Rod finally replied.

Grem and Acer perked up and their dismal moods were slightly lifted. Both of them smiled and exchanged glances with each other. Roseanne was watching their every move, as if waiting for them to turn on them at any moment.

"Rod, what are you doing?" Roseanne whispered to him. Rod only raised his eyebrows at her, and continued.

"However, even though you are my best friends, that does not mean you earn instant forgiveness for the things you did to me. If you value our friendship, its going to take a lot of work getting it back to how it used to be," Rod said, narrowing his eyes. Grem and Acer's smiles faded instantly, and they lowered their hoods in shame.

"Why are you giving them a chance, Rod? I'm not sure they deserve it," Roseanne whispered cautiously. She was not one to forget the past so easily.

Rod looked over at Roseanne and smiled.

"Well, look what I did to you. I lied about who I was to you and was a threat to you operation. Yet, you gave me another chance," Rod said. Roseanne stopped for a moment and thought, and then nodded her hood.

"I guess you're right, dear," Roseanne replied. "You are giving them another chance, but not letting them entirely off the hook."

"Precisely."

Rod turned back to the Lemons, who still had their hoods lowered, looking at the ground. They looked like dogs that had their tails between their legs.

"Now, you two need to get fixed up. Make an appointment here at the hospital, they do a good job," Rod addressed to them. Grem and Acer perked up again.

"Wait, you really mean it?" Grem asked with some excitement in his voice. Rod smiled and nodded his hood.

"Its what friends are for. And don't worry about the cost, it will be on me," Rod said.

The two Lemons could not be happier. Grem signaled Acer to put back on his cloak, and then they headed towards the door.

"I couldn't thank you enough. And I'm sorry…for everything," Grem apologized, and lowered his hood. Rod knew that before when he attacked him, Grem had not been sorry. However, now that his eyes had opened to how Rod had been trying to help the Lemons all along, he couldn't help but feel sorry. He had trusted the wrong cars.

"Don't worry, I understand. Now, go make an appointment. We are all heading back to America next week and you guys need to look good as new," Rod said, and this only made Grem happier. The Gremlin smiled as he closed the door behind him.

"Well, Rod. I did not expect that from you. I thought for sure that we were going to throw them out," Roseanne said. He knew she was still skeptical, but he knew that would change in time.

"Well, thoughts and feelings change. How you feel about someone one day can be different from the next. Plus, I know when we get home, a much needed bar night awaits for all us," Rod said, knowing a beer and a good smoke was just what they all needed when they finally got home.


	29. A Miscommunication

Chapter 29 – A Miscommunication

The doctor's prediction of Rod's release date had been correct. A week after Grem and Acer's arrival, Rod, Roseanne, Darrel, Grem and Acer all boarded onto a private jet which would take them back to America. Rod was as good as new, and he had never felt better.

As the jet was in flight, Rod and Roseanne were cuddled next to each other near one of the windows, with Roseanne sleeping at his side. Darrel was reading a newspaper while smoking a cigarette. Grem and Acer were having complimentary in flight drinks and eating some snacks.

The repairs done on the two Lemons had been astounding. Grem and Acer had never looked or felt so good in their lives. Their rust was gone and their bodies had been polished, which gave off a brilliant shine. They even offered to fix Grem's teeth, but he wanted nothing to do with it. As he had explained to Rod, he had pride in those missing teeth; Grem lost them fighting big cars like him.

The ride back from a mission had never felt so peaceful to Rod. There were no missions waiting for him back home, and the car he loved was sleeping at his side. He looked out the window as the clouds rolled on past. He may have not come back from this mission as successfully as the last one, but at least he was coming back alive.

The jet finally made its descent and landed at the CIA headquarters. Rod nudged Roseanne to wake up, and then they collected their belongings. They entered the main building and all five started to head towards the visitor's area. At that moment Rod's heart began to race, was Emily waiting for him?

Before he could reach the doors to the visitor's area, he heard someone call out his name behind him. It was Pete.

"Hey, Torque! Can you come here a moment?" Pete called out. Rod told everyone he would join them shortly, and then drove over towards Pete.

"What's up?" Rod asked.

"Well for one thing, it is excellent to see you back here again!" Pete said, being as jovial as ever. The two cars shook tires, and then Pete continued.

"Finn McMissle is here with his accomplice. They want to meet with you," Pete said, now lowering his voice. "They are in the conference room on the third floor. I will tell the others you will return in a little while. They can wait in the visitors area in the meantime." Rod nodded his hood and thanked Pete, and made his way up towards the third floor.

As Rod opened the conference room door, he had no idea what to expect from Finn McMissle. When he entered the room, he saw the British spy sipping on some tea, and with him was the tow truck he passed off the information to back in the Japanese bathroom.

"Rod Redline! It is so wonderful to see you!" Finn McMissle exclaimed as Rod drove through the door. "Come, park yourself anywhere you like."

"Its nice to see you too, Finn. I thought they had done away with you back on those oil rigs," Rod mentioned, remembering the night that Grem had pronounced him dead. Finn laughed.

"They don't know all my tricks," Finn said and winked. Rod laughed in response.

"Now, on a more serious note, I need to sincerely apologize. I know I was supposed to come collect the photo, but if I did our mission would have been compromised. I saw the thugs from the oil rigs at the party, and I couldn't have let them see me. I sent in a diagnostics agent, Holley Shiftwell, to collect it instead. She told me she was going to go into the men's bathroom, despite her will to do so in order to collect the photo. However, she said the "agent" came out of the bathroom instead, and that was this tow truck, Mater," Finn addressed.

"Howdy, Mr. Redline!" Mater greeted, waving his tire happily.

"Well it is a good thing she didn't enter that bathroom. I was getting beat up pretty bad by two Lemons, and I wouldn't have wanted her to get roped in," Rod remarked. Finn nodded his hood.

"So I heard from Pete. Now, I need to say that you certainly handed the information off to the right car. Although he is not a spy, he played one very well; he had us fooled! He was also the one who figured out in was Axelrod."

"Oh really?" Rod asked, cocking his eyebrow. "And how did the tow truck figure it out?"

Finn let Mater go into his story about how he figured out it was Miles. As Rod listened, he was fascinated how Mater was able pull all of these things together that he had missed.

"I knew at that party I wasn't leaking oil, so it had to have been him. I remember that really confused me when it happened, but I understand it now," Mater said.

"Amazing, you weren't kidding, Finn," Rod said with awe.

For a moment there was silence. Finn quickly took a sip of his tea and lowered his hood.

"I also need to admit something else. Unfortunately, there was a miscommunication between the CIA and C.H.R.O.M.E. Miss Shiftwell was the one who told me about an American being deep undercover on the oil rigs, but it was never specified who it was…" Finn said gloomily.

Rod was taken aback for a moment. They never communicated who the agent was? He was only addressed as the "American"? He knew that the CIA communications division, not Pete, was in charge of contacting C.H.R.O.M.E when it came to which agents they were sending out on missions, or which agents they were supposed to meet up with.

"If I had known it was you, I would automatically have known that Mater was not an undercover spy and come looking for you. I need to apologize again."

Rod knew that Finn didn't have to apologize; it wasn't really his fault that the CIA had messed up in communications. However, Rod could tell Finn was taking it out on himself for Rod's injuries. If he had known the agent they sent out was Rod, maybe all that Rod went through could have been prevented.

"You don't need to apologize to me, Finn. What happened, happened, and I'm still here," Rod said, giving Finn a soft smile. Finn smiled back.

"You are right, Rod. Well, at least this mission is over and done with. This was one of the toughest ones I have been on yet!" Finn remarked.

"Tell me about it. Those Lemons sure know how to run an operation," Rod replied. _As well as make some pretty good friends, which make carrying out your mission difficult_ he thought at the same time.

Suddenly, Rod heard a buzz, and it was an incoming transmission for Finn. He excused himself and drove towards the back of the room, talking in a low voice. Mater watched on quietly.

"Well, looks like I have to get going," Finn remarked, and turned around back towards Rod and Mater. "Mater, we are going to drop you back off at home, and then it looks like I am off on another mission… C.H.R.O.M.E's orders."

As the three cars left the conference room, Rod was able to shake tires with Finn and Mater before they departed.

"Thank you for coming and talking to me, I appreciate it," Rod told Finn while shaking tires.

"Its no problem. I'm sure I will see you again soon. Enjoy your much needed break, Rod," Finn replied. They all finally parted ways, and Rod drove back down to the first floor towards the visitor's area.

As he drove down the hallway, he ran into Roseanne driving out of the woman's bathroom. He noticed she didn't look so well, and he asked if she was ok.

"To be honest, I haven't been feeling well for a while, I don't know what is wrong with me," Roseanne said, lowering her hood as they drove along.

"Don't worry, when we finally get you back home we can take you the doctors," Rod said, and nuzzled her side. Roseanne brightened up a little bit.

Rod and Roseanne then ran into Pete, who was looking concerned. He gave them the heads up that Emily was in the visitor's area.

Reality had finally hit for Rod. He was back home, and now this time he really had to face Emily, and he would be going to divorce court. He sighed and looked over at Roseanne, but she returned him with a smile.

"Be strong Rod, I know you are. We will face her together, and I am here for you," Roseanne whispered. Rod returned her smile because she was right. Roseanne was at his side, and with her support he could face anything.

The two cars drove towards the visitor's area and opened the door, side by side, united as one.


	30. Emily

_****Hey everyone, sorry for the delay! The holidays were keeping me busy, but now I am back! Just letting everyone know, there is only one chapter left until this story is complete! Enjoy!****_

Chapter 30 - Emily

As Rod and Roseanne entered the visitor's area, Rod quickly scanned the area. Over in one corner he could see Darrel, Grem and Acer talking amongst themselves. In the other corner was Emily. She was parked next to Jackson, and a scowl appeared on her face as soon as Rod drove into the room. However, there were two other guests he had not expected to be there; it was his two children.

"Daddy, daddy, daddy!" Andy Redline yelled out. He bolted over towards his father, with Rick Redline in tow. Rod embraced his two sons and was immediately comforted by their presence. Being able to see his children after surviving this mission was one of the greatest things he could have asked for.

"We missed you, daddy! We didn't know when you would be coming back home," Rick said.

"Well, now I'm here, boys. And for a long time…I'm here to stay," Rod replied, and he was so happy this was true.

Out of the corner of his eye while talking to his boys, he saw Emily drive up towards him. Her scowl had not subsided, and she slightly narrowed her eyes.

"Who is she?" Emily called out, pointing over towards Roseanne with her tire. The entire time Roseanne had been watching on Rod with his sons, with a peaceful look on her front bumper. Now she perked up and looked over at Emily calling her out.

Rod looked up from his sons, and he knew it was time to face her.

"Her name is Roseanne. We met on my most recent mission, and she is my girlfriend," Rod stated, and watched as Emily's bumper twisted with disgust.

"You cheated on me, with a Gremlin? A filthy little riff raff Gremlin?!" Emily spat. Rod took offence to her comment and threateningly revved his powerful engine. Roseanne heard the comment but did not react. She remained calm, since she was used to comments such as these.

"So what if I did? How many times have you cheated on me behind my back, when the entire time I was faithful?" Rod spat right back. The spouses were now locked in a battle, which started to scare Rick and Andy. They drove over towards Roseanne, who did her best to comfort them.

"Doesn't mean you should do it too, especially with a Gremlin! How dare you!" Emily yelled.

"She is not some riff raff girlfriend as you perceive. I genuinely love her, and she has been the car I have been looking for my entire life. It doesn't matter if she is a Gremlin. I find her attractive on the inside and outside, and that is what matters!" Rod yelled back at her. For a moment the two cars stopped fighting, and it was clear that Emily was taken aback. Rod had not cheated on her out of spite because she had cheated on him; he had actually fallen in love.

During this moment of silence, Roseanne finally raised her voice.

"This is not the time and place to be fighting. You guys need to settle everything in court when you get there…" Roseanne started, but was cut off by Emily.

"Don't you even start to get involved in this, you filthy Lemon!" Emily barked at her, and Roseanne shot her a scowl.

"I wasn't getting involved. I was trying to get you two to stop fighting over something that can't be changed or solved in the CIA visitor's area. Plus, you are scaring your children…"

"I don't care about how the children feel, this is between Rod and I and none of you matter right now," Emily barked again, not aware of her spoken words. Rod gasped and shook his hood angrily.

"Enough is enough!" Rod yelled. He then paused and tried to regain his composure.

"Roseanne is right; this is not the time to be fighting. We do need to settle this in court and not scare the children," Rod said in a calmer tone. He drove away from Emily and headed towards Roseanne and his kids. Emily's comment about her not caring how the children felt enraged him, but now was not the time and place to fight over her snide remark.

Rod looked at his kids, who seemed very frightened by the whole situation. He then looked back in his side view mirror, and saw Emily driving away from him and back towards Jackson.

"I'm sorry, boys are you ok?" Rod asked. They replied by shaking their hoods no.

Emily then yelled to Rod that her and Jackson were leaving. He watched the two of them storm out the door, and he guessed she was leaving him with the children. She did not ask them to come along with her as she left.

Seeing that the coast was clear, Grem, Acer and Darrel drove over towards them.

"We did our best to stay out of that," Grem said, with a tone of uncertainty.

"I honestly was ready to jump in if that continued. What a witch," Darrel said angrily, shaking his hood. "Why did you marry her? I was at that wedding, but I never understood why."

"I don't know either Darrel, but that isn't an issue right now. I'm done with her," Rod replied, and then he turned back to his kids. Now it was safe to ask questions.

Rod asked his kids how life had been at home since he had left for his most recent mission. Andy and Rick then went into details of how it had been living with Emily since she requested a divorce, which they had known all about before he had gotten home the first time.

"We noticed things had been up. She was always out late and never came home right away. Then she brought home Jackson, and he has been living in the house since you left for your mission," Rick said sadly.

"Yeah, and Jackson isn't so nice…to us. He has only ignored us or yelled at us if we do something wrong. Mom hasn't been too great either, she has kind of put us aside…" Andy said, and Rod could see he was holding back tears.

"She goes out all the time with Jackson; we barely even see her. And like Andy said, she has kind of put us aside and ignores us. I asked her to come to something for school, and she said she was busy that night…and she was out with Jackson," Rick said, lowering his hood in dismay.

Listening to these stories about his soon to be ex-wife made him even angrier than he was before. How could she ignore the children, and spend time with someone who she was only still dating?

Then he remembered a comment she had made when he had come back from his first mission, and it made him laugh.

"Heh, funny that she is doing this. She told me that I was a bad influence on you boys and you guys needed someone you can count on. Sounds like she hasn't been living up to her own expectation," Rod said and laughed again.

"She still wants full custody of us," Rick remarked, and Andy nodded his hood with sorrow.

The fact that Emily still wanted full custody made him laugh as well. The court would not approve of how she had been treating the kids lately. Also, she had just technically abandoned her kids with him, for him and not her to take care of. He was defiantly going to bring this up as a mark against her.

"Well, after we present all of the evidence, I'm sure that is not going to happen," Rod said with confidence, and his children's moods brightened slightly.

Although, now a thought came to Rod that had not occurred to him before. Where were they all going to live? Rod knew for a fact that he was kicked out of his own home. He knew Roseanne could go back to her parents and he and the kids could come along, but they lived all the way in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

"So, guys, where are we all going to be heading off to from here?" Rod asked everyone.

"Well, Acer and I had a shared apartment back in Kenosha, but since we have been gone I'm sure someone has taken it by now," Grem replied. Rod could tell this was the first time Grem had actually thought about this issue, since he started to look worried.

"I have a one bedroom apartment in downtown Detroit, but I know all of us could not fit in there. I barely do enough as it is," Darrel said.

Rod thought for a moment, and then he remembered something. Pete had helped everyone out before by providing them a place to stay in Japan, while Rod was recovering in the hospital. Maybe he could help them out with finding a place to live as well.

"Let's go talk to Pete. He should be able to get us a place to live. I need to stay around here while going through divorce court, but you guys can get somewhere back home if you want," Rod directed to Grem and Acer.

"We can stay here for a while, we don't mind," Grem replied.

"I need to tell my parents I am home from work. I'm worried that if I tell them I'm moving in with someone, they will object," Roseanne said, lowering her hood slightly. Roseanne had always lived at home, and if they found out she was moving in with a man, let alone a muscle car, they would be furious and demand her to come home at once.

"Just tell them you got home and you found some girls to move in with, that are Gremlins," Acer suggested.

"They won't buy that, I know them too well," Roseanne grumbled.

"Its better than nothing. Plus, are they really gonna come all the way out here and make you move home with them? You are a full grown woman now; they can't make you do anything," Acer remarked. Roseanne shrugged with her tires; Acer did strike up a good point.

"Well, let's talk to Pete and figure this out before we make any more plans. We haven't even found a place to live yet," Rod mentioned, and signaled them to follow him towards Pete's office.

Coming home had been more stressful than Rod had even imagined. Between dealing with Emily and figuring out where to live, the sudden stress began to take a toll on him. He was happy to see his kids, but now he had to find them a place to live as well, since Emily didn't take them home. He was exhausted, but he knew exactly what he needed to take the stress away.

Tonight he was going to have a much needed bar night with Grem, Acer, and Darrel. After all the craziness that had been thrown at him, he knew a beer and smoke would do him good.


	31. A New Mission

Chapter 31 – A New Mission

It had been a little over a month ago since their plane touched down and brought them home to America. Since then, everyone's lives had changed in many ways.

Rod and Roseanne were able to get an apartment not far from the CIA headquarters with Pete's help. They shared their apartment with Rod's two children and Darrel. Darrel had dropped the lease on his old apartment back in downtown Detroit, since his drug dealing days there were over. Grem and Acer got an apartment not far away from them, and would visit them very frequently. They also made it routine that on weekends they would all go out to the bar for drinks, just like they did back on the oil rigs.

Grem and Acer had started to look for jobs, but all they could find for jobs were working at fast food joints. Acer had made an oath to himself that he would not return to the food industry, since he worked at a drive thru before he was sent to the oil rigs. Upon returning home, Grem and Acer knew their potential to be leaders, which made most jobs they were "qualified" for undesirable. Rod thought that maybe Pete could help them out again and hook them up with jobs in the CIA or another federal agency. Rod was happy with the news that Pete had found jobs worthy of their potential in another agency, and so were they. Now that they had real jobs, as Grem had said, this meant more booze money for them.

Rod had also started divorce court, and one of the first things he lost was the house. To him, that wasn't as big of a deal as keeping his children, since he saw Emily too unfit to be a mother to have full custody. Everyday when he walked into the court she continually bashed him, saying how horrible of a father he was since he was never around. He usually took her insults with a grain of salt, and hoped that there would be enough evidence against her to let him have full custody. As the days in court continued, despite Emily's remarks, having his kids in his full custody began to look favorable.

One day Rod had the apartment to himself. Darrel had started up a new job at a grocery store, the kids were in school, and Roseanne had gone to the doctors. She started to feel better not too long after they got home and she decided not to go, but within a few weeks after coming home she was sick again. Rod hoped she didn't catch anything in Japan and bring anything bad back with her.

As Rod sat alone in the apartment, he was reviewing some work the CIA gave him. While he was not going out on missions he needed some sort of income, and Pete helped him out once again. The CIA was training him to be a diagnostics agent, where he worked behind the scenes to help agents that were currently out in the field. When he first started at the CIA, Rod thought being a field agent was all that he was qualified for. However, Pete had decided that due to his experience, he could work in diagnostics and be trained without needing a college degree. To Rod this was a saving grace; if he could make it as a diagnostics agent, he might never have to go back into the field again.

Currently he was learning to review photographs. The photos he was learning to analyze came from an agent that was on a mission in the Czech Republic about ten years ago. As he looked over the photos, he learned how to pick out key points that were of importance to the CIA. If he had been trained in diagnostics earlier, it might have helped him analyze the photo he took of Mile's engine out on his mission.

For once in his life, Rod was truly happy. He might have lost his original home, but having his children, brother, and beautiful girlfriend in his life made up for everything he was loosing between Emily. His new job now allowed him to be home, where he could spend time with those he cared about. He also had the opportunity to watch his children grow up. When he was out on his missions he had lost out on so many things with his kids, and finally he was given the chance to be there for them.

Rod had also made a very important decision upon arriving back home. He decided after he was done with divorce court, he was going to ask Roseanne to marry him. He was getting very eager to ask her, but he had divorce Emily before that could happen. He knew he could wait, but he couldn't wait to make Roseanne his bride and wife.

Rod put down the photos and went into the kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee. He then drove over towards the window and looked outside, taking in the afternoon sun. School was getting out in an hour and Roseanne had to be on her way home. Soon the apartment would be busy again, but Rod would have not had it any other way.

Just then, Rod heard someone coming through the door of the apartment. Rod turned around to find Roseanne. Her expressions confused him slightly; she looked almost ready to burst with excitement.

"How was your doctors visit, Roseanne?" Rod asked, putting down his cup of coffee. He came over to her and kissed her on the lips.

"Well, they finally figured out the problem," Roseanne said, her smile as wide ever.

"And…what did they say?"

Roseanne looked down at first, and then scraped her tire gently across the ground. She looked back up at him, and their eyes locked.

"Rod…I'm pregnant," Roseanne said.

For a moment, Rod's world stood still. He couldn't believe it; she was actually bearing him a child?

"How far along are you?" Rod asked. He was still in shock.

"Almost two months along. That is why I have been so sick lately…" Roseanne paused. "This is one of the greatest things that has ever happened to me. I have always wanted to have a child, but could never find a father that was worthy enough to help me raise it. I found you, and you gave me this wonderful gift and the chance to be a mother. I love you so much," Roseanne said, choking up a little on her words. She drove over towards Rod and embraced him, and he returned it.

The love that they had for each other was going to go even deeper. Now they were going to raise a child they had made together out of their love for each other. Rod didn't know Roseanne had always wanted a child, but she probably kept quiet about it until she felt the moment was right to discuss it. Although Rod had not planned on having a child with her so soon, it didn't matter. Roseanne was so happy, and Rod would not trade that happiness for anything in the world.

Rod heard the door open again, and he heard Andy and Rick return from school. Soon, Rod realized, there was going to be another addition to his family.

When Rod Redline had gone out on his mission to the oil rigs, he thought the only thing it would help him do was escape from his divorce. However, he did not expect he would fall in love, make new friends and be returning home to be a father again. Rod's life had changed so much in the past few months in a way he had never expected. He may have not come away from completing the mission successfully, but he came away from the mission being successful with himself.

In a way, Rod had started a new mission upon returning home, and he planned on being on this mission for years to come. This mission was to start a new life with the ones he loved and cared about, and be there for them. He knew this mission was one he was never going to regret, and he was ready for whatever came his way.

THE END

_***Thicker Than Oil is finally complete! I want to thank everyone who read this story and stuck with it all the way until the end! I can't believe I finished this, between school and work it took me time but I completed it...this is one of the biggest stories I have ever written. I hope everyone enjoyed the story I gave Rod Redline! Stay tuned for more works from me!****_


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